Final Fantasy VII: Another Realm
by Kyle Pisces
Summary: An alternate universe fic, it has a fully intergrated new character and various new things that fit in well with the story. Now up to chapter 21 (New version, stuff added, errors fixed)
1. Chapters 1-5

Disclaimer: I hate these things.. alright, I don't own FF7, any of the characters, attacks, etc. I don't own FFT, anything that goes with it, FF3/6 or DBZ. If I did I would be a rich little bastard and wouldn't have to write this stuff now would I? Now then, on with the story before I change my mind..   
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Chapter 1: "Pisces" and After the Pillar Assault   
  
  
Deep within the ShinRa building in Midgar, on the 67th and 68th floors, are creatures.. rare beings.. one of a kind.. like the legendary Jenova... the "Ancient" and Nanaki of Cosmo Canyon.. and the being simply known as HO512... the personal play things of Hojo. However.. there is also another... a human... he is the pride of Hojo.. simply known as Pisces. Few ever see him.. and when they do.. they do not think much of him.   
  
"Just a mere boy.. nothing more."   
  
Some would say, while others would just merely scoff and walk away. Why should they be impressed by a boy who is only 6'0, not very buff, who is just normal looking? But he is more than a boy, he is.. a biological weapon.. Hojo's sick attempt at playing God. Now we leave him and the ShinRa building.. and go to a small group of rebels.. just after the fall of the Sector 7 plate.. the remains of AVALANCHE, who are known as Cloud Strife, Barret Wallace and Tifa Lockheart.   
  
Just after the fall of the Sector 7 plate, just after it had all fallen apart.. Barret stands in-front of the gate that once lead to Sector 7.. but now all it leads to is a sector filled with twisted metal. He just stands there.. staring at it.. staring at what had just killed so many innocent people.. his friends Vicks, Wedge and Jesse.. and what's worse.. his daughter Marlene. Cloud and Tifa just stand behind him, taking in what has just happened.  
  
"It's.. almost like a nightmare.."  
  
Tifa mutters in a low voice.  
  
"Such needless death and destruction... it sickens me..."   
  
Cloud says in a low tone. But Barret stays silent while rage, hatred and sadness swell within him. After a few moment he explodes.  
  
"GOODDDAAAMMNNNITTT!!!!!"   
  
Barret screams as he lifts his gun-arm and fires what seems like an endless supply of bullets into the twisted metal.   
  
"Why the Hell did this happen?!?!?!?!? Why...?"   
  
Barret says as he falls to his knees, crying... first time many have seen him openly cry. Tifa and Cloud just stand there... as if.. their legs will not work.. they're too shocked to really move.   
  
I.. can't believe they.. crushed an entire Sector.. to get rid of us..."   
  
Cloud says in a cool voice, finally regaining his control and normal cool shell. Tifa looks at him, a little shocked and speaks;  
  
"So.. you're saying we're to blame for this?!?"   
  
Barret stands up slowly and shakes his head, speaking in a still rage filled voice;  
  
"Hell no.. it ain't our fault.. it's those damn ShinRa.. they're to blame.. they made it so the plate would fall.. they're to blame cuz we were tryin' to stop them from makin' money."   
  
Cloud turns and starts to walk away from them both as he speaks;  
  
"Maybe so.. but we'll be blamed for it.. ShinRa will come in.. offer aid to those who managed to get out and to those families who lost loved ones in Sector 7... ShinRa will become the hero, while we become more hated.. it was a.. rather smart plan."   
  
"DAMN THOSE FUCKING SHINRA BASTARDS!!!!!!!!!!"   
  
Barret screams as he gets up.. but then his voice becomes filled with sorrow;  
  
"Because of them I lost my friends.. and my daughter..."   
  
Suddenly Tifa remembers something that was said back at the pillar.  
  
"Wait.. Barret.. I think Marlene.. I think she's alright... remember when Aeris said 'don't worry.. she's safe'? I know she was talking about Marlene.. I just know it.."  
  
Barret turns and looks at Tifa and speaks with a shaky voice;  
  
"D-..do you.. really think so?!?!?!?"   
  
All Tifa does is nod and then looks at Cloud, who seems to be thinking.   
  
"Aeris..."   
  
Is all he mumbles as he starts to walk away.   
  
"C..Cloud? Cloud wait!"   
  
Tifa blurts out as she runs to follow him. Barret looks at what was once Sector 7.   
  
"Good-bye.. my friends..."   
  
Barret says as he turns and walks away, following Tifa.  
  
  
Chapter 2: To Aeris' house   
  
  
Cloud falls to his knees just outside the small park and an ominous voice goes through his head;  
  
"'I am an Ancient, the last of the master race of the planet.'"   
  
Cloud lifts his hands to his head, his face full of pain and mumbles a name;   
  
"Sephiroth..."   
  
Tifa reaches him and looks rather worried and kneels next to him and places a hand on his back;   
  
"Are you.. alright Cloud?"  
  
She tries to comfort him from something she has no idea of. Barret walks up to them and stands next to Cloud and looks down at him and speaks slowly;  
  
"Yo Cloud.. what's wrong with your spiky-headed ass? Pull it together man.. we don't need to lose another person."  
  
Cloud slowly stands up, pulling his hands away from his head and shakes his head slightly and then speaks in his normal tone;   
  
"I'm alright.."   
  
Tifa stands up rather quickly.   
  
"Cloud.. what was that all about?"   
  
Tifa asks, sounding rather concerned for Cloud, which makes Barret mentally smirk. Cloud sighs slightly and then speaks in a calm voice;  
  
"I... remembered.. what Sephiroth once said.. that he was 'the last of the master race of the planet' an Ancient... and on the Pillar.. Tseng said that she was an Ancient. There must be a connection... I'm going to see Aeris' mother... I need to know what the Hell is going on..."   
  
Cloud then turns and starts to walk off again. Tifa, not wanting to be left behind, follows him closely.  
  
"Cloud.. what do you plan on doing once you talk to her mother?"   
  
She asks slowly and calmly. Cloud stays silent for moment and then simply replies with;   
  
"I don't know.. but.. I'll figure something out..."   
  
Barret follows behind both of them and shakes his head.  
  
"Known' you, you'd prolly get some crazy assed idea bout' saven her from the ShinRa."  
  
Barret says as they all walk toward Aeris' house.   
  
"Maybe you're right Barret... maybe.."   
  
Cloud says as he walks. Tifa and Barret aren't shocked at all, they expected him to say that.. but Tifa starts to become increasingly jealous of Aeris.   
  
"Why does he want to save her so much.. could he be.. no... he couldn't be.. could he.. love her?... But why not me..."   
  
Tifa says to herself as they walk to Aeris' home, in search of answers.   
  
  
Chapter 3: Aeris' Past   
  
  
"Here we are.. Aeris' home..."   
  
Cloud says as they reach a semi-large home. The sight is rare in Midgar.. a waterfall... a garden with flowers... a small piece of life that was seemingly ripped away from an area outside Midgar and placed in the slums.   
  
"It's.. beautiful.. I haven't seen something like this since I came to Midgar..." "   
  
Is all that comes from a stunned Tifa can say. Barret seems unimpressed but remains silent as Cloud walks up to the door and knocks. Aeris' mother opens the door, and seems a little surprised by Cloud.   
  
"Ah.. so you've come back.. well come in.."   
  
She says as she moves out of the way. Cloud walks in, followed by Barret and then Tifa.  
  
"Thank you very much.."   
  
Tifa says as she enters, she always did have more manners then Cloud and Barret. Mrs. Gainsborough closes the door and walks in-front of them all.   
  
"So what brings you here mister.. Cloud was it?"   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough asks in a calm voice. Cloud nods and then speaks;  
  
"Yes.. I've come here to tell you that Aeris was taken by the ShinRa and that she's an Ancient."  
  
"Oh I know Aeris is an Ancient.. and I know she was taken by the ShinRa.. she came here a little while ago with a child.. a little girl, and the Turks caught up with her and took her.. she agreed to go with them only if they left the child alone, which they agreed to.. they have no interest in a child..."   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough says with a nod. Barret pushes Cloud out of the way and speaks in a hopeful tone;  
  
"Did you say a child?? Where is she??"   
  
Suddenly a small voice is heard from above;   
  
"Daddy!!!"   
  
It's Marlene. She runs down the stairs and jumps in Barret's waiting arms.   
  
"My goodness.. you mean to tell me that you left a child all alone.. how could you do such a thing?"   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough says in a calm, but pissed tone. Barret looks at her and speaks in a calm tone;  
  
"Listen.. please don't start with me.. I want to be with her.. but I have to fight.. for her.. an' the life of the planet.. to protect her.. I have to fight.. to make sure she has a world to grow up in.."   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough looks rather touched by his statement.  
  
"I understand completely.."   
  
She says with a nod. Cloud, not being one who likes to wait, breaks in;   
  
"So... then that must mean you're an Ancient as well..."   
  
"No.. no I'm not.."   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough states in a semi-depressed tone.   
  
"But.. how can she be your daughter if you're not an Ancient?"   
  
Tifa says in a somewhat confused voice.   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough pauses and then starts to speak;  
  
"I'm not her real mother.. her real mother died long ago.. although it seems like yesterday...  
  
... it was 15 years go.. during the middle of the war.. my husband was in a small, far off town called Wutai. One day I got a letter saying that he was on leave, and would arrive shortly, so I went to the train station and waited for him.. but he never came.. I told myself;  
  
'One day late.. it's prolly taking longer than they thought to get him here.'   
  
So I went home.. the next day I went to the train station... and saw a woman with a child.. you see a lot of this during wars.. so you get used to it.. I rushed to the woman and she looked up at me and spoke to me in a sad tone;  
  
'Please take care of Aeris.. she's all I have left...'  
  
Before I could answer.. she was gone... I had no children of my own, my husband was gone.. I took her home with me... I suppose because I was lonely.. and she grew on me.. my husband never came home.. I figured his leave was canceled, it was a common thing back then... A few days later.. Aeris said the strangest thing to me;  
  
"'I'm sorry.... somebody you loved was coming to see you.. but his spirit had already returned to the Planet'"  
  
I asked her if she meant a star in the sky, but she said it was this planet.. it was strange.. but I never thought about it until one day..."   
  
Tifa jumps in;   
  
"Until one day?"   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough nods and goes on;  
  
"Yes.. until the day I got a letter saying... my husband.. had died in battle... and then what she said came to me... I knew she was special from then on. She tried to cover her powers so hard.. so I acted like I didn't notice. The child loved to talk.. and she would tell me stories about how she was in some lab with her mother... and seeing some glass tube with a boy in it.. she called him 'Pisces'... Then one day.. a man showed up who called himself Tseng, he said that;   
  
'Aeris is a very special child.. she's an "Ancient"'   
  
I told him I knew, I had heard the stories, but Aeris seemed upset;   
  
'Nuh huh.. I'm just a normal kid!'  
  
Tseng looked right at her and tried to talk to her;   
  
'Aeris.. you're of special blood.. we would like you to help ShinRa to find the "Promised Land" so that the people in the slums can be happy for the rest of their lives..'   
  
Aeris, of course, wasn't happy and she screamed;  
  
'I'm not an Ancient, I'm a normal child!!!!'   
  
As she ran to her room...and with that Tseng left... and that take us up to today."   
  
Cloud, Tifa, Barret and Marlene are shocked from the story.  
  
  
Chapter 4: To Wall Market   
  
  
Cloud stands there, silent, in his "thinking" stance.. going over it all in his mind. Meanwhile Barret and Marlene have left the room, so he can talk to her without the others overhearing him being "weak", and Tifa just stands there next to Cloud, letting it all sink in.   
  
"So.. what do we do now Cloud?"   
  
Tifa says as she looks at him, having faith in him to know what to do. Cloud walks toward the door and speaks in a low voice;   
  
"I'm going to go save Aeris..."   
  
"Cloud wait.. how do you plan on getting to the ShinRa building? And how do you plan on saving her all alone? Please.. let me go with you..."   
  
Tifa says as he turns and looks at him, almost begging him to let her go with him.  
  
"Please don't leave me alone again..."   
  
Is what she wants to say, but holds herself back. Cloud turns and looks at her and shakes his head.  
  
"It'll be dangerous when we get there.. I don't want you getting hurt Tifa"   
  
He sounded cocky when he said they'd get there, but concerned when he told her he didn't want her to get hurt. She looks at him.. and shakes her head and speaks;  
  
"I don't care if I get hurt.. I want to help you in anyway I can."   
  
Cloud gets an almost shy smile on his face, but quickly removes it and then looks at the door.   
  
"Alright then.. lets get going."  
  
Cloud says as he starts to open the door.   
  
"Yo wait up, I'm goin' too... can't let you have all the fun now can I?"   
  
Barret says as he comes down the stairs. He reaches the bottom of the stairs and looks at Aeris' mother and speaks in his nicest tone;  
  
"Can you please look after her a little while longer?"   
  
"Of course.. but don't go getting yourself killed.. she needs you."   
  
Mrs. Gainsborough says in a stern voice. Cloud smirks as he knows not many would get that tone of voice around Barret.   
  
"Now I know where Aeris gets her stubborn side..."   
  
Cloud says to himself as he opens the door.   
  
"Alright lets go everybody.."   
  
Cloud mutters as he walks out the door. Tifa follows him along with Barret.   
  
"So where do we go from here?"   
  
Barret asks as they stand outside.  
  
"Hmmm...."   
  
Is all he gets from Cloud. Barret of course uses his normal tone;   
  
"What the Hell do you mean by 'Hmm...'? You don't know where the Hell we're goin'?"   
  
"Well um.... not really..."   
  
Cloud says in a semi-meek voice.   
  
Tifa, who has been silent comes up with an idea and speaks;   
  
"Well, why don't we go to Wall Market and try to figure something out.. does that sound alright with you two?"   
  
"Good idea Tif., lets get going."  
  
Cloud says as he nods slightly and Tifa gives him her puffy, 'I'm ever so mad at you' look, since she's been telling him ever since they've met not to call her "'Tif.'" and Cloud laughs as he looks over his shoulder at her to see her reaction, but she really does like it when he calls her that. And so they all head off to Wall Market.. where they'll find something which will lead them to what they seek, some new friends.. their fate and the start of their true mission to save the planet.  
  
  
Chapter 5: The Specimen known as "Pisces"   
  
  
Our brave group of three head toward Wall Market, meanwhile.. above the plate in the ShinRa building, Hojo is on the 67th floor, looking over his specimens, enjoying the ideas of what experiments he'll do next. He taps a small green button that's behind a panel that not many know about, and a large wall panel opens up, slides to the side, and a large tube comes out. The tube is filled with a bluish liquid and within that liquid floats the "boy" known as Pisces... he has wires hooked up to him, heart monitors, feeding tubes, tubes connected to him to remove waste, etc.   
  
He wears a pair of baggy black pants and a loose fitting blue shirt, while his boots are dark red. His jet black hair stands up as it floats in the water, it's broken into "spikes." His eyes are closed and a mask is over his mouth and nose supplying the oxygen he needs to survive. The tube is over 8 feet tall, and 6 feet wide, the only thing is has on it is a small metal plate with the words "Pisces Project" engraved on it. His eyes are closed right now, they're sensitive to light because he normally spends his time in the space behind the wall panel, but when they're open they're pure black. No one has ever heard his voice. He appears to be around 20, some call him a "boy" because he looks like one, his body doesn't seem to reflect his real age.   
  
Hojo looks at him with awe... as if he is impressed with him, and then speaks;   
  
"Hello Kyle.. how are we today?"   
  
The moment he said the name 'Kyle', the boys' eyes opened and he looked right at Hojo, but he is unable to speak, as the feeding tube is down his throat.   
  
"Ahh good.. you're awake.. soon my 'child' you shall be ready.."   
  
As Hojo said that Kyle's hand touched the glass. Hojo goes on;  
  
"You like the idea of being ready don't you?"   
  
Kyle nods slightly and then Hojo nods, and speaks once more;   
  
"You wish to be free from this tube and walk among other people.. speak.. hear your own voice.. live your life... don't you?"   
  
Kyle's eyes show his longing for such things... his desire to be free of that damned tube.. to walk.. to see the sun.. to feel things beyond that which is within the tube. Hojo turns his back and looks over his shoulder at Kyle and then speaks once more;  
  
"Yes.. soon Kyle.. you shall be free.. but of course you will do what we ask of you, will you not? After all.. you were made for battle."  
  
Kyle nods slowly.. he hates the idea that he's thought of as a weapon, but he knows if he goes against them they'll just put him back or keep him in the tube... and he doesn't want to be trapped in there for all his life. Hojo smiles more and he again speaks;  
  
"Good boy... you should be pleased... you'll be following in the steps of the great Sephiroth... only you will not go against us. I remember when we first found you.. you were so young.. and yet had powers beyond that of even the Ancients... you could control magic without needing Materia... and you could control the energy of your body. That's why we chose you.. injected you with Jenova's cells.. to make you more powerful... it's odd that your eyes do not glow even though you've been exposed to a lot of Mako energy..... you'll become the perfect warrior.. maybe even more powerful then Sephiroth himself... now then Kyle.. do you remember that Ancient named Aeris that was here all those years ago?"   
  
Kyle nods slightly... she was the only thing even close to a friend that he's had in his life.   
  
"Well.. we found her.. and she's back.. she's grown up, would you like to see her?"   
  
Kyle nods happily as Hojo spoke, which is rare for him.   
  
"I can see you're happy.. alright then Kyle.."   
  
Hojo says as he taps the metal plate on the tube. Part of the floor of the next floor up opens, and the tube is lifted up into another tube that holds Aeris. This tube is bigger and not filled with a liquid. She doesn't seem all that scared, she's been through this before.. spent most of her life like this... but she looks shocked when a tube is lifted through the floor, until she sees the metal plate.  
  
"Kyle..? Is that really you?"   
  
She says as she gets to her feet and walks up to the tube, placing her small hand on the tube, Kyle places his right where hers is and looks at her.   
  
"They.. still... keep you trapped like this? Even after all these years?"   
  
She asks as she looks up at him, and he nods slightly.   
  
"I.. can't believe they wouldn't free you after so long... it's.. so cruel to keep you trapped like a rat in a cage.."   
  
She says softly as she hugs the glass.. crying slightly, out of sadness for him... and all he can do is watch... 


	2. Chapters 6-10

Chapter 6: The Message   
  
  
Cloud, Tifa and Barret finally make it to Wall Market, a small town known for the quote: 'You can find anything here!'   
  
They stand at the entrance, not sure of what to do.   
  
"So.. what do we do now?"   
  
Cloud asks as he turns to Barret and Tifa.   
  
"I don' know.. but first we should get some sleep, it's been a long day."   
  
Barret says in his demanding tone of voice.   
  
"I don't know... maybe we should try to find a way to the ShinRa building before we take a break..."   
  
Cloud says as he looks at Barret.   
  
"No... I think Barret is right.. we all need some rest.. I, for one, can't go on much longer.. I'm about to fall asleep right here in the middle of the street."   
  
Tifa says as she looks at Cloud, using her sweet tone, trying to sway him into agreeing to get some rest.   
  
"Heh.. that should get him to agree.."   
  
Barret says to himself as he sees Cloud about to give in. Cloud nods slightly and looks at the Inn which just happens to be located not even 15 feet away from them and starts to walk toward it as he speaks;  
  
"Alright... we'll get some rest.. and start looking tomorrow.."   
  
Tifa and Barret follow Cloud until they reach the Inn. Cloud turns to them.   
  
"Uh.. who has any money.. I'm kinda short on cash.."   
  
He says as he lifts an empty pouch he uses to carry Gil in. Barret laughs and then looks at Cloud.   
  
"Yo man.. where did all your cash go to? You been getting some love on the side and not telling us?"   
  
Barret says with a smirk. Cloud has a shocked look on his face and turns his back to them. Tifa kicks Barret in the leg while Cloud's back is to them and gives him her puffy, mad look.   
  
"Barret.. you're sick... I just kinda spend it all on some new Materia.. can't go into battle without the right tools now can we?"   
  
Cloud says as he turns, showing Barret and Tifa the Fire, Ice, Lightning and Restore Materia he had bought before the pillar fell.   
  
"Damn man.. jus' had to prove me wrong didn't ya'?"   
  
Barret says in an amused tone.   
  
"Alright, now getting onto something more important.. this is pretty much all I have."   
  
Tifa says as she holds out a pouch with some Gil in it and offers it to Cloud.   
  
"Well.. now I owe you some Gil..."   
  
Cloud says as he takes the pouch. Tifa shakes her head and speaks;   
  
"Forget about it."  
  
Cloud nods and turns to the door, opens it, and then walks in followed by Barret and Tifa.   
  
"Uh.. how many beds per room?  
  
Cloud asks the man behind the counter as he walks up to the counter.   
  
"One room has three and the other two have two beds."   
  
The man behind the counter says in a somewhat bored manner. Cloud looks at the man and speaks;   
  
"Well then.. we'll take the room with three beds, how much?   
  
"Price depends on how many nights you'll be using it for, 1 night is 25 Gil, 2 nigh-"   
  
The man is cut off by Cloud;   
  
"Alright then... here"   
  
He places 25 Gil on the counter. The guy grabs the Gil and pockets it as he turns and grabs a key. He turns and throws it to Cloud and speaks;  
  
"First door on the right pal."   
  
Cloud catches the key and nods slightly.   
  
"Alright you two.. lets get some sleep.. we'll be busy tomorrow.."   
  
Cloud says as he makes his way to the room and unlocks the door. Tifa and Barret walk to the room and enter. They looks around slightly, common room, three beds, nothing else.  
  
"Does it matter which bed we each take?"   
  
Tifa asks, knowing it's a dumb question.   
  
"Doesn't matter as long as Cloud and you end up in the same bed huh Tifa?"  
  
Barret thinks to himself, but he doesn't have the guts to say it out loud.   
  
"Why should it matter... they're all pretty much the same."   
  
Cloud says as he pulls of his 5 foot sword and sets it down near the middle bed. Tifa sits down on the bed to the right of Clouds sword and speaks;  
  
"I guess so.."   
  
Seeing as how Cloud is taking the middle bed and Tifa is on the one to Clouds right, Barret walks to the last bed and flops down, almost snapping the bed in half.   
  
"Jus' don' go making too much noise tonight you two.."   
  
He says, smirking as Tifa's face gets kinda red, and Cloud looks at Barret and blinks.   
  
"What do you mean Barret?"   
  
Cloud asks, ignorant to the fact that Tifa loves him and Barret laughs.   
  
"He's just joking around Cloud.."   
  
Tifa says as she lays down, getting comfy. Cloud pulls his boots off and then lays back, getting comfy as he speaks;  
  
"Uh.. alright then..."   
  
Soon he drifts off to sleep.. and suddenly finds himself in the darkness as a familiar voice is heard; (Alright.. stuff in is the ever mysterious voice and those in " " are Cloud)  
  
  
  
"Huh... you again? Yes.. I am..."  
  
  
  
"Um.. well... not exactly... but I'll find a way tomorrow...."  
  
  
  
"Or what??"  
  
  
  
"Tell me damnit..."  
  
  
  
"What?!??!!? But how!?!??!"  
  
  
  
"So.. how do I get there before she dies without looking..."  
  
  
  
"Yeah.. what about it?"  
  
  
  
"Batteries...?"  
  
  
  
"Wait! What's this "way"? And why do I need batteries?"  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 7: The Shiny Golden Wire of Hope  
  
  
"Cloud.. Cloud!! Come on Cloud.. wake up."   
  
Clouds' eyes slowly open.. and he sees Tifa above him, trying to wake him up.   
  
"Huh... wha'... T..Tifa?"  
  
He says his eyes pop open and he sits up. Barret, who is behind Tifa, speaks;   
  
Yo man.. you over slept."   
  
Tifa stands up as Cloud moves and grabs his boots.   
  
"Sorry bout' that... anyway.. I think I know a way to get to the ShinRa building..."   
  
Cloud says as he gets his boots on and ties them.   
  
"H..How Cloud?"   
  
Tifa asks in an almost shocked voice. Cloud grabs his sword and stands up. He puts his sword on his back and speaks;  
  
"Just follow me and I'll show you where it is.."   
  
With that Cloud walks to the door and opens it. Tifa just blinks a little and looks at Barret who shrugs.   
  
"Well... are you two just gonna stand there or are you gonna come with me to save Aeris?"   
  
Cloud says as he looks over his shoulder at them. Tifa looks at Cloud and walks toward him, followed by Barret.   
  
"We're with ya..."   
  
Barret says as he walks. Cloud turns his head and walks out the door followed again by Tifa and Barret. On the way out Cloud, throws the keys to the guy behind the counter.   
  
"Did you enjoy your stay?"   
  
The man asks.. but gets no response as they all get to the entrance and exit.   
  
"So where to now Cloud?"   
  
Tifa asks as she looks around. Cloud turns and starts to walk north and the others follow him.  
  
"East of Corneo's mansion... we'll find our way...."   
  
He says in a low tone. They then walk in silence until they reach the weapons shop, that has a large neon sign that says 'GUN' above the door.   
  
"Hey.. I need to stop in here for a moment.. could you please wait out here for a minute or two?"   
  
Cloud says as he stops in-front of it.   
  
"Um.. sure Cloud..."   
  
Tifa says as she stops. Cloud enters and looks around.   
  
"Uh.. excuse me... I need some batteries.."   
  
Cloud says looks at the two guys in the shop.   
  
"You're lucky.. just got some batteries in.."   
  
The owner says, he is to the left of Cloud. Cloud walks to the left and looks at the owner and speaks;  
  
"I need two of them.."   
  
The owner grabs two batteries and speaks;  
  
"That'll be 10 Gil."   
  
Cloud looks at him and blinks.   
  
"10 Gil for two batteries? Isn't that kinda steep?"   
  
He says and the man smirks and speaks;   
  
"Hey.. we gotta make a living somehow."   
  
Cloud sighs and pulls out 10 Gil;   
  
"Alright..."   
  
The guy takes it and hands Cloud the batteries and speaks once more;   
  
"Nice doing business with ya'"   
  
Cloud takes the batteries and walks to the door and mutters;  
  
"Yeah right..."   
  
He then walks outside and toward Tifa and Barret, who are just standing around.   
  
"So Cloud.. get what you needed?"  
  
Tifa asks in her normal sweet voice. Cloud nods and pockets the batteries. Barret looks at him and asks;   
  
"You needed ta get batteries fer what?"   
  
Cloud starts to walk north again and replies;   
  
"I'll find out when I need them Barret..."   
  
Barret goes to say something but finds he's almost been left behind and he runs after Cloud and Tifa.   
  
Cloud and the other walk to Corneo's mansion.. and then East of it until they come to a dead end. A long, thick black cable hangs down. It was most likely a communications line that was knocked down when the Sector 7 plate section fell. Tifa looks around and speaks;   
  
"So where is this way?"   
  
Cloud looks around then up.   
  
"The cable... it's the way..."   
  
Cloud says with a nod. Barret looks at Cloud like he's insane and speaks;  
  
"What the Hell..... are you crazy?? You think we can all climb that up ta the plate?"   
  
Cloud looks at him, his blue eyes glow as they always do from the Mako he's been exposed to and he speaks in a low tone;   
  
"It's the way Barret.. just trust me.. it's the only way up..."   
  
Tifa closes her eyes and lets out a breath and then looks at Cloud and speaks in a calm tone;  
  
"Lead the way.. I'm behind you completely.."   
  
Cloud nods a little and grabs a hold of the cable.   
  
"So Cloud.. what should we call this?"   
  
Barret says as he walks up to the cable. Cloud blinks and looks at Barret and then speaks in a small tone;   
  
"I didn't know we needed to name it... how about the "cable of hope"?   
  
Barret shakes his head and then thinks for a moment. He then snaps his fingers and speaks;  
  
"Maybe it should be called... 'The Golden Shiny Wire of Hope..'"  
  
Both Tifa and Cloud look at Barret a little strange.   
  
"Barret... what made you come up with that?"   
  
Tifa asks, still looking at Barret. Barret thinks for a moment and then shakes his head;   
  
"I have no clue at all..."   
  
Cloud simply laughs and starts to climb upward..  
  
  
Chapter 8: Aeris' Nobel Gesture   
  
  
"Kyle... Kyle.. please wake up..."   
  
Kyle's eyes open and he looks upon Aeris as she spoke. Aeris is sitting down in-front of the tube, as she has for the past 7 hours while Kyle was asleep. Kyle cocks his head to one side. Aeris looks up at him and speaks softly;  
  
"I'm sorry to wake you.. but.. I'm just so lonely..."   
  
Kyle places his hand on the tube.. wishing he could speak to.. or atleast be able to touch her so she wouldn't feel so lonely.   
  
"You.. must know what it feels like.. being trapped in a tube... most likely never seen by many...."   
  
She says as she just looks at him. He nods slowly as she looks him in the eyes.. it's a sharp contrast... his pure black eyes to her bright green ones.   
  
"How.. many.. have really seen you since I was last here?"   
  
She asks in a low voice. His hand moves away from the tube and he lifts a finger up. She blinks slightly and speaks again;  
  
"Only one person?"   
  
A voice comes from behind her;   
  
"That's correct.. and that one person is me.."   
  
Aeris looks over her shoulder and sees Hojo. Hojo smirks and moves his glasses up his nose and speaks again;  
  
"I see you two are getting attached... how.. nice... now then Aeris... it's time for some tests.. you'll have to say good-bye to Kyle for the time being.."   
  
Kyle looks at Hojo, his eyes slightly narrow.. he isn't pleased by this. Aeris gets up and stands in-front of the tube and she speaks in a defiant tone;   
  
"No.. Kyle and I are talking.. take him away and I won't go along with your tests."  
  
Hojo looks at Aeris and then Kyle, that evil smile forms on his face and he speaks;.  
  
"Now, now Aeris.. if you do not go along with my tests..."   
  
He laughs wickedly and goes on;  
  
"Then I'm afraid Kyle won't be getting out of his tube anytime within the next 2 years..."   
  
Kyle eyes grow numb... and Aeris' grow wide and her voice is slightly shaky as she speaks;  
  
"You.. you wouldn't..."   
  
Hojo simply smirks.   
  
"My dear.. I can do whatever I want.. President ShinRa will just hear that Kyle won't be ready for another 2 years... he can wait for his weapon."   
  
Hojo says as Aeris makes a fist and looks down.  
  
"Alright.. I'll go along with your tests if it means Kyle won't have to suffer being in that tube any longer then he has to."  
  
As she finishes Kyle looks at her... surprised that she would go along with them in order to help him... he places his hand on the tube.. wishing he could thank her for such a noble gesture.   
  
"I knew you would see it my way..."   
  
Hojo says as he pushes a button and the floor opens up once more. Kyle tube is lowered into the room below.. and placed back behind the panel... back into the darkness that he's known all his life...   
  
  
Chapter 9: The maze of the Sector 6 Plate Section  
  
  
"Yo Cloud... how much further?"   
  
Barret yells as he and the others climb. They've been at it for a good 10 minutes, and both himself and Tifa are starting to wear out.   
  
"Almost there... about another 20 or so feet until we reach some solid footing.."   
  
Cloud yells down to Tifa and Barret who are below him.   
  
"That's what you said 5 minutes ago.."   
  
Tifa yells up to him, the climbing has worn her cheerful personality down. Cloud grabs a hold of a piece of metal and vanishes from the other's sight.   
  
"Looks like I was right this time.. this metal plate is solid enough to support all of us..."   
  
Cloud yells down at them. Barret and Tifa finally make it to the plate that Cloud stands on and plops down, tired out.   
  
"Man... I'm never gonna climb nothin' ever again in my life..."   
  
Barret says in a tired voice as he reaches the plate and sits down. Cloud seems to be full of energy for some reason, he always is. He looks at them and speaks;   
  
"You mean you two are tired out from that? That was rather easy..."   
  
Barret and Tifa both look up at him, annoyed. Cloud gets the message and shuts his mouth about that. But of course it isn't shut for long;  
  
"Um.. alright then... let's take a break before we go on.. alright?"   
  
Tifa wipes away some sweat and speaks;   
  
"Sounds like a good idea..."   
  
While Tifa and Barret rest, Cloud moves about and looks around, walking on paths created by the mess around them... pieces of the Sector 7 plate section hang from where it was located, the train that usually made trips between Sector 7 and the plate hangs and sways, it was pulled down when it fell apart... those poor people who were in it were either killed instantly or slowly and painfully... large sections of metal that were torn apart by the blast just landed there... the smell of melted metal still fills the air, along with the smell of death. Cloud looks around.. looking for a way to get to the plate.. hoping that what he was told in his dream was real and not some trick his mind played on him... and then he sees something.. something that looks like a path of wires and metal connecting the area they're at with a path that seems to lead higher.. only.. there's a gap in it.   
  
"Damnit.. if only that gap wasn't there.. then we could go on..."   
  
Cloud says as he walks over to it and notices blades.. what looks like a propeller.... but he doesn't know why a propeller would be on the plate and he mumbles;   
  
"If only there was a way to move the blade.. then it could make a bridge..."   
  
Then it hits him... he runs to the propeller.. and looks for some cords.. he finds them and follows them until he comes to what looks like a fuse box. The lid has "DANGER: High Voltage" written on the case. Cloud slowly open up the casing and finds the energy cell still intact and a small slot under it.. the same size as one of the batteries he bought and he mumbles as he looks at it;  
  
"Could this be.. why I need the batteries?"   
  
He pulls one out.. and places it in the slot. The energy cell lights up somewhat and the blades start moving.  
  
"It just needed some energy to start it up..."   
  
Cloud says to himself as the blade spin rather quickly.. and Barret and Tifa get up and jog toward him at a semi-slow pace.  
  
"What's going on?"   
  
Tifa asks as she reaches him. Cloud looks at the propeller and mumbles;  
  
"Pray that the a blade stops in the right spot Tif."   
  
The 3 of them just stand there.. watching as the blades slow down.. the cell and the battery die down.. and the blades go slower and slower.. until it stops.. and as luck would have it one blade stops just close enough to form a bridge. Cloud is rather pleased but doesn't jump up or down.   
  
"Guys.. I give you a way to go on with this mission..."   
  
Cloud says as he walks towards the blade. Tifa and Barret follow behind him slowly.   
  
"Yo.. wait a second.. how did you know you would be needin' batteries?"   
  
Barret asks in a semi-confused voice. Cloud climbs onto the blade and speaks;   
  
"Call it a hunch..."   
  
Tifa stands just behind Cloud and puts a foot up on the blade as she replies;   
  
"One heck of a hunch..."   
  
Cloud looks back at both of them and then speaks slowly;   
  
"Alright guys... to be safe only one person on there blade at a time.. alright?"   
  
Barret and Tifa both nod and Cloud turns his head back toward the blade. He then slowly and carefully walks over the blade and hops over the four foot gap that remains, he's now on a piece of metal that once supported the tracks of the train. A car hangs above him, the glass smashed.. he looks up.. and sees dead bodies. While he's looking up Tifa crosses next, followed by Barret.. the blade almost falls under Barret weight.   
  
"Damn.. maybe all these muscles was a bad idea..."   
  
He says to himself as he manages to jump onto the metal that Cloud and Tifa are on, just in time too, as the blade breaks and falls down onto what remains of Sector 7.   
  
"So.. now where do we go?"   
  
Tifa asks as she looks up and then around. Cloud also looks around, looking for anything that could be a pathway to the plate.. they can't turn back.. they have to find a way to go on. Barret moves around Tifa and Cloud and walks over to a section of track and grabs a hold of it.  
  
"Hey.. maybe we could use this as a ladder or somethin'."  
  
Barret says and Cloud looks over at Barret and the track section, and then up.. seeing a possible pathway.  
  
"Now why didn't I think of that...."   
  
Cloud mumbles to himself as he walks over to Barret.   
  
"Well.. only one way to find out..."   
  
Cloud says as he grabs onto it and starts to climb up slowly. As he climbs the tracks move a little, some bits of metal fall off it, almost hitting Barret in the head, which makes Tifa worried about Cloud and she speaks;  
  
"Cloud be careful... it might fall apart at any moment.."   
  
"Don't worry.. I'll be alright..."   
  
Cloud says as he goes on climbing, finally reaching another thick section of metal.   
  
"This section seems like it can hold all of us.. come on up and we'll figure something else out...."   
  
He says as he looks down at them. Barret and Tifa both slowly make their way up their "ladder", and onto the metal plate Cloud is on.   
  
"So Cloud.. do you know where we go next?"   
  
Tifa asks as she once again looks around for a pathway.. she doesn't want to be trapped here. Cloud walks around the plate, looking around. He spots another of those power boxes and walks over to it. This one seems to control some kind of metal bar that was used to stop people from walking when the train came around.   
  
"I wonder if this could work..."   
  
He says as he looks up and sees wires and pieces of solid metal above him. He opens up the casing and sees another slot, and he pulls out the second battery.   
  
"We'll lets see if this will work..."   
  
He mutters as he places the battery into the slot, and the energy cell lights up slightly. Cloud looks around on the casing for a switch or something to move the bar, but finds nothing.   
  
"Damnation.."   
  
Cloud says louder then expected, which gets the attention of Barret and Tifa.   
  
"What's wrong Cloud?"   
  
Tifa asks as she walks over to him.   
  
"I thought I had found a way to get higher up.. but it failed.."   
  
He says, his voice slightly filled with anger.   
  
"Work!"   
  
Cloud says in a slightly raised voice and kicks the box, and the bar pops up. Cloud hops on one foot, since kicking it hurt.. a lot.   
  
"Yo Cloud.. you alright man?"   
  
Barret asks as he watches Cloud hopping up and down. Cloud just gives him an annoyed look and then looks at Tifa and speaks;   
  
"You weigh the least.. so go ahead and see if that bar will even hold your weight.. if it looks like it's gonna fall get off of it, alright?"   
  
She nods slightly and gets onto the box and then slowly starts to climb up the bar and onto another piece of metal.   
  
"Barret... you next..."   
  
Cloud says as he puts his foot down.   
  
"But what if it breaks after I'm off of it? What about you?"   
  
Barret says as he walks up to him.   
  
"If that happens just go on without me.. just make sure Aeris is saved."  
  
"But.."   
  
Barret starts to say but is cut off by Cloud;   
  
"Just get going Barret."   
  
Without further complaints Barret gets on the bar and starts to climb. Cloud thinks himself lucky that Tifa didn't hear what he and Barret said, because if she did she would complain to him about it and try to get him to go up first in hopes that he could make it up, and he knows she wouldn't stop until he gave in.   
  
He watches Barret climb, wondering if the bar will snap and he'll be trapped... it doesn't and Barret gets on to the metal pipe that Tifa is on. Cloud finally gets onto the bar... and climbs up and onto the pipe. They all climb up and onto some form of metal plate that's been twisted and melted. Cloud looks around and sees another pathway but there's a problem... the path is a good 15 feet away from them... and there's no way to get to it. He looks around and down and sees something.. a piece of thick metal wipe that's swaying from side to side... and a plan starts to form in his mind.   
  
"I have an idea..."   
  
Cloud says as he climbs back down the metal pipe and stops just above the swaying pipe.   
  
"Cloud.. what are you going to do?"   
  
Tifa yells down to him. Cloud keeps watching the pipe and simply replies;   
  
"Simple... I'm gonna jump..."   
  
Her eyes get a little wide, she's now in a full blown panic and her voice becomes a little shaky as she speaks;  
  
"Cloud.. are you insane??? C..Cloud.. there has to be another way..."   
  
He shakes his head but keeps his eyes on the pipe.   
  
"No there isn't... it's the only way up..."  
  
He says as he tries to figure out exactly when to jump, knowing that if he misses it'll mean his death. He waits.. and then finds what he thinks is the best time and jumps. His jump was off and he almost completely misses the pipe.. but he just barely manages to grab a hold of it with his left hand. Tifa almost faints right then and there, scared half to death by him almost missing it. Barret just simply watches, and smiles just a little as he sees that Cloud has managed to grab onto the pipe.   
  
"That was too close..."   
  
Cloud thinks to himself as he moves around and grabs the pipe with his other arm, and pulls himself up.   
  
"You jerk!!! Scaring me half to death like that!!"   
  
Tifa yells at him, trying to act mad, but she's really happy that he's safe. He looks at her, smiles slightly and speaks;   
  
"Sorry about that... never was good with angles and stuff like that..."   
  
He then looks to his right, at the next jump he has to make which is below him. He swings with the pipe, waiting for the right chance and then jumps. This time he lands perfectly. He then looks up at them both and speaks;   
  
"Alright guys.. it's your turn to jump..."   
  
Barret looks down at him and blinks as he replies;   
  
"You serious?"   
  
Tifa looks at Barret and speaks;   
  
"He never jokes around during serious times like this."   
  
Cloud looks up at the huge metal pipe that's above him, one that was used to transport water as both Barret and Tifa make their jumps, both have a better time of it then Cloud did.   
  
"Nice to see you two didn't mess up like I did."   
  
Cloud says as Tifa lands a few feet away from him. She then makes her way to him and hugs him.  
  
"You're such a jerk..."   
  
She says as Cloud looks down at her and blinks a few times.   
  
"Never scare me like that again or I swear I'll never, EVER talk to you again.. you got that?"   
  
She says in a small, shaky tone. Cloud puts a hand on her back, half hugging her and he speaks;   
  
"I'm sorry I scared you.. I promise I won't do anything like that again.."   
  
"Alright... now then... we should get going."   
  
She says as she lets go of him. Cloud nods as he grabs a hold of the pipe and starts to climb, not saying much, he's kinda shocked 'cause of the fact that she hugged him, and the fact that he also kinda hugged her, which has never really happened before. Both Barret and Tifa follow him, Barret doesn't say anything, he wonders if she'll ever tell him. They climb, and climb.. and climb some more until they finally reach it, the place they'll have to get into to save Aeris.. the ShinRa building.  
  
  
Chapter 10: The ShinRa Building Entrance   
  
  
The ShinRa building stands before them, it's massive. It's over 69 floors high, and each floor has a row of windows that go around it. It's built in a circular shape, and there's a huge set of stairs that lead up to the entrance. They walk up the stairs to the entrance and stop in-front of the main door.   
  
"Alright.. this is it...."   
  
Cloud says as he turns to and looks at Tifa and Barret.   
  
"Awright... let's bust in there an' kick some ShinRa ass!"   
  
Barret says as he starts to charge to the door.   
  
"Barret.. wait.."   
  
Tifa says as she watches him and Barret stops and turns;  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
She stays silent for a moment and then speaks;   
  
"Maybe we shouldn't just go charging in the front door.. it's dangerous... maybe we should find a way to sneak in."   
  
"I ain't gonna sneak in, I'm ready for action."  
  
Barret says as he looks at her.   
  
"Alright calm down... lets think this over, and anyway.. we have to get ourselves ready in-case we have to fight."   
  
Cloud says as he pulls out the pouch he carries the Materia in.   
  
"We have two Lightning, two Ice, two Fire, and one Restore Materia. We have to divide them up among us. So... which ones do you guys want?"   
  
Cloud says as he looks at them both.   
  
Tifa walks up to him and speaks;  
  
"I think that Cloud should take a Lightning, Fire and Ice Materia, I'll take the Restore and Ice Materia and Barret you take a Lightning and Fire Materia... all right?"   
  
Cloud looks at her and speaks in a low tone;   
  
"Why do you only want an Ice Materia?"   
  
She looks at him and smirks a little as she speaks;   
  
"Don't think I can handle myself with only my fists and one magic attack Cloud?"   
  
He blinks slightly and shakes his head;   
  
"I never said that.. I just want you to be safe.."   
  
Her face gets red slightly, and then she turns her back to him and replies;   
  
"I'll be alright with just those two Materia."  
  
Cloud shrugs as he pulls out his Materia and places them in his sword and armor as he speaks;  
  
"All right then..."   
  
He then hands Barret his Materia and then finally hands the rest to Tifa, who has turned to face him again.   
  
"So then... if your all ready lets get goin'"   
  
Barret says in an impatient tone.   
  
"I know this may sound stupid Tifa but I believe going in the main way is a better idea then sneaking in... they'll never expect us to burst in.. we'll have an advantage."  
  
Cloud says as he turns and starts to walk to the main door.  
  
"You're right.. it does sound stupid... but I'll follow you."   
  
Tifa says as she follows behind him.   
  
"Well finally, I was getting tired of all this talkin'."   
  
Barret says as he follows the others. Cloud reaches the front door and places his hand on it, and he speaks in a small voice;  
  
"Time to see what fate has in-store for us..." 


	3. Chapters 11-14

Chapter 11: The Lobby Battle  
  
  
Kyle's eyes pop open, his tube has been raised up to the 68th floor once more, Aeris is sitting there, in-front of him. He doesn't seem to notice her like he always would. He seems... distracted by something. She looks at him and speaks softly;   
  
"You're awake.."  
  
He doesn't look at her, he acts like he didn't hear her. She blinks and speaks again;   
  
"Is there.. something wrong?"   
  
He then looks down at her, wishing he could speak.   
  
"Soon.. I.. no... we shall be free Aeris..."   
  
He thinks to himself.. wishing he could tell her.   
  
"Are you.. alright Kyle?"   
  
She asks as she looks him in the eyes and seemingly knows the answer..   
  
Meanwhile.. Cloud, Tifa and Barret walk in through the front door, and a huge room opens up before them. Clear elevator tubes are on the wall to the right of them, a sign that looks like it's made of pure crystal with "ShinRa Incorporated" in big red letters, and behind that is what looks like a pickup truck. A bulletin board filled with papers is located near some comfy looking chairs. A stair case is on either side of the lobby which leads to the second floor. A woman behind a desk looks at them and speaks;   
  
"Excuse me.. do you have an appointment?"   
  
Cloud looks at her and simply replies;   
  
"No.."   
  
"Well then.. your going to have to leave"   
  
She says but she falls silent as Cloud lifted his sword up so she can see it.  
  
"I don't think so..."  
  
He says in a low tone. She screams and pushes a button which sets off an alarm, and then hides under her desk.   
  
"Awright... now the fun starts!!"   
  
Barret says as a group of ShinRa soldiers come out of an elevator on the far side of the lobby. Cloud, Tifa and Barret get ready to fight as the soldiers head straight for them. Cloud charges right for the soldiers, his sword ready to slice them apart. They get their guns ready for the kill. They aim. They fire. Cloud knew they would use guns, the cowards never use swords. Just before the bullets hit him he jumps up, and before they can aim he screams;   
  
"BOLT!"   
  
The Lightning Materia glows green. Sounds of thunder can be heard from above as energy rips through part of the stairs and strikes the soldiers. It causes their guns to melt slightly, but that doesn't matter as the soldiers are dead.. the energy was enough to stop their hearts. Cloud lands and looks around. Tifa's voice comes from behind him;  
  
"Cloud.. more are coming!"  
  
But she was too late, they were already there, and once had his sights set on Cloud head. Just as he fires Tifa runs toward Cloud and manages to knock him out of the way, the bullet barely gets her, but it causes a pretty nasty looking wound as part of the bullet ripped at her flesh. She screamed a little as they landed, and the soldiers get ready to finish them off but as they lifts their guns, they're shot by Barret. It's never smart to turn your back to him. Cloud gets up and kneels next to Tifa, who is in a lot of pain, she's on her stomach and from his angle she looks like she's holding her stomach.   
  
"Please don't be to badly hurt... please don't die on me..."   
  
He says as he turns her over, and sees the wound on her arm, just below the elbow.  
  
"I don't think... I'll die.. from such a... small wound..."   
  
She says in a pain filled voice. A voice is heard above them;   
  
"Hurry up!!!"   
  
More soldiers.. sounds like a lot of them. Barret runs over to Cloud and Tifa and speaks;  
  
"Come on lets go!"   
  
Cloud nods slightly and helps Tifa up, and they make their way to an elevator. The door opens and they get in. Some soldiers fire as the door closes.   
  
"So now where do we go?"   
  
Barret asks.   
  
"I don't know.. the highest floor that we can get to..."   
  
Cloud says as he looks at Tifa's wound. Barret looks at the panel and it says;   
  
"All floors above the 59th floor need a Keycard to verify that you have the proper clearance."   
  
Barret pushes a button that's marked "59" and the elevator moves.   
  
"Tifa, it doesn't look all that bad.. try healing it with that Restore Materia you have... and... thanks.. for saving my life.."   
  
Cloud says as she pulls out the Restore Materia.  
  
"I couldn't let... my best friend die... now could I?"   
  
She says as she holds it up to her wound. The Materia glows green and the glow slowly starts to heal her.   
  
  
Chapter 12: Within the ShinRa Building  
  
  
The elevator door opens, and they step out. They step into a dull looking floor, it has few windows and a few chairs. Cloud backs up as he sees some guards.   
  
"There are a few guards up ahead... I wonder if they have a Keycard we could use..."   
  
Cloud says as he looks over his shoulder at Tifa and Barret.   
  
"Well lets find out.."   
  
Barret says as he gets his gun-arm ready. Cloud looks at him and speaks;   
  
"Barret... we need a way to do this without making much noise.. they don't know we're on this floor yet... and I don't think your bullets will get through their armor..."   
  
The guards do indeed have thick armor on their chests, arms and legs.   
  
"So then.. what do we do?"   
  
Tifa asks in a low voice.   
  
"Hmmm..."   
  
Cloud mumbles as he looks at them and then at Tifa.   
  
"I may have an idea... it involves you Tifa."   
  
Cloud says as he looks her over slightly.   
  
"What would I have to do?"   
  
Tifa asks... not expecting what he's going to say next. Cloud replies;  
  
"Well... since they're men.... and since they're guarding a boring little hole such as this, and ShinRa does make their guards work long hours..."  
  
He stops to take in a breath and then goes on;   
  
"What does that have to do with the plan Cloud?"   
  
Tifa asks, wishing he would get to the point. Cloud then speaks again;  
  
"Well Tifa.. it's simple... I've noticed that you've um.. well.. "grown".. and noticed that guys have been staring at certain areas of you.. so I was thinking that..."  
  
"You don't mean that you want me to..."   
  
Tifa says as she cut him off. Cloud nods and then goes on;   
  
"You'll have to use your "charm" on them..."   
  
Her face turns a bright shade of red and she speaks in a low tone;   
  
"Cloud.. I'm not like that..."   
  
"It's the only way Tifa, all you have to do is get them to turn there backs to us and keep them turned, we'll sneak up behind them and knock them out, a chair to the head should work since they have no head gear."   
  
Cloud says in a reassuring voice.  
  
Tifa looks at the floor.. not sure of what to do. She takes in a deep breath and then looks at Cloud and speaks;  
  
"Alright... I'll do it... but I've never done this before..."   
  
Cloud puts a hand on her shoulder and tries to reassure her;   
  
"Tifa.. if they're anything like most men, they won't notice if you make a mistake. Just flash a smile, bring the attention to your um.... "talent" and they won't even notice any mistake you make. Trust me on this.. I should now.. since I am a guy....."   
  
A semi-smirk forms on her face and she looks right at him and speaks;   
  
"Since when have you been noticing my 'talent'? Am I some kind of sexual object to you? Or maybe a fantasy?"   
  
Cloud's jaw kinda drops.   
  
"Well um... uh... no.. of course not Tifa... what ever made you think that?"   
  
He says in a broken voice and her smirk grows a little bigger.   
  
"Well the fact that you've noticed that I've 'grown'.. and just now the fact that it took you a while to answer me... and the fact that you got the idea for me to do this."   
  
Cloud stays silent as she speaks, making no attempt to make a defense for these charges.  
  
"I thought so... we'll talk about this later..."   
  
Tifa says as she walks away from them and toward the guards. Cloud looks at Barret, whose smirking and he gets slightly annoyed at him.  
  
"Wipe that smirk off your face damnit..."   
  
Cloud says in an annoyed tone. Barret's smirk grows and he speaks;  
  
"So Cloud... didn't think you'd be thinkin' 'bout her like that.."   
  
Cloud grows more annoyed with those words.  
  
"I do not.. she's my friend.. that's all... I don't have fantasies about my friends... even if they're..."   
  
Cloud then trails off and goes silent.  
  
"If they're what Cloud?"   
  
Barret says, trying to get him to talk. Meanwhile, Tifa walks over to the guards.  
  
"Excuse me gentlemen.. I'm kinda lost.. can you help me?"   
  
She says in what she thinks is her "sexist" voice.. she's really bad at this. The guards turn as and look her over, checking out her "talent" as she walks to the right of them, swaying her hips and such.  
  
"You see.. I was just minding my own business when these mean terrorists came in and started killing people... one even tried to rape me."   
  
Tifa says as Cloud watches and listens. He shakes his head and sighs, speaking in a low voice;  
  
"This is pathetic... I don't think they're gonna fall for this..."   
  
But surprisingly enough they do.. well kind of... the guards turn slightly and walk toward her, both getting ready to rape her themselves. She turns and faces them.   
  
"Will you help me?"  
  
She says in her "sweet, innocent" voice. Cloud and Barret both grab a chair and sneak up behind the guards. Just as the guards were about to make their move, Cloud and Barret slam the chairs into the guards' heads, knocking them out. Cloud and Barret then search the guards, finally finding a Keycard.   
  
"Alright we have it.. lets get going..."   
  
Cloud says as he walks over to the elevator and pushes a button. The doors open and he steps in, followed by Barret and Tifa. Cloud places the Keycard into the slot and the computer scans it.   
  
"You have clearance to the 60th floor"   
  
The computer says in a female voice. Cloud pushes a button marked "60" and the doors close. Once the door close, the elevator starts to go upward.   
  
A minute later it stops and the doors open. Cloud's head pops out and he looks around. The floor they're on isn't very great, to the left and right are these oddly shaped pillars, and in front of the elevators are 2 rows of statues, each row is broken into 2 sections. The row closest to the elevator has 8 statues in total, and the one closest to the northern wall has 6.   
  
Four ShinRa soldiers stand guard behind the northern most statues. The statues form a sort of barrier that blocks access to the stairway they need to get to the next floor. Cloud walks out of the elevator and walks around.. looking for a door or something. Tifa and Barret stay inside the elevator until Cloud motions for them to come out. It appears that they now see Cloud as their leader. Cloud walks to the left of the elevators and locates a door. He then comes back to the elevators.  
  
"Alright I found a door.. lets get going."   
  
Cloud says in a low voice. Cloud goes to the left and walks to a door, followed by Tifa and Barret. He then opens the door and steps in, followed by the others. The room has a bunch of screens in it, each one showing an image from a camera that's in that room. One screen shows some soldiers standing near the statues that are closest to the northern wall. They move about every 30 seconds, watching the elevators. It was pure luck that they got to that room before they were spotted.   
  
"We have to sneak past those guards using the statues to cover ourselves. I'll go first... and when I'm at the other side, I'll motion for one of you to do the same as I did.. alright?"   
  
Cloud says as he slowly opens the door that's on the right side of the small room they're in. Both Barret and Tifa nod as Cloud opens the door and sneaks behind the closest statue. He's watched the movement and believes he's gotten the pattern down. Once every 30 seconds he hears the boots of the guards make a noise as they move and as they move he sneaks behind another statue. Ten and a half minutes pass as they all sneak past the guards and into the small room that was on the other side of the larger room. They all climb the stairs to the next floor, wondering what challenge await them.  
  
They finally get to the 61st floor and open the door, since the staircase on each floor is within a small room. They enter a rather large room that looks rather comfy.. it appears to be a lobby of some kind. On the South wall are elevators, and all around the room there are windows. In the very center of the floor there is a huge tree, and around the base are bars that protect its water source. Five small circular tables are around the floor, each with 4 chairs. To the left of the tree are four large, longer tables that are bent in the middle so they kind of look like boomerangs.   
  
Our brave group splits up and start to walk around, looking for a Keycard, because in order to get to any floor above the 60th, you need a Keycard to prove that you have the proper security level. Both Cloud and Barret have no luck, but Tifa does. She walking around looking for a Keycard, not looking where she's going and bumps into a guy that looks like he's important. The guy turns, since his back is to her and he likes what he sees.   
  
"I'm sorry, I wasn't paying attention..."   
  
Tifa says in her normal voice. The guy gets this sly smile on his face, he's planning something.   
  
"It's alright... say... are you new here?"   
  
He asks in a pathetic attempt to start a conversation. Tifa nods and goes on;  
  
"Uh yeah... I just got here a few minutes ago.. I'm not really used to this place.. I mean.. it's so big.."   
  
The guy comes to the belief that he can, with some work, get her into bed.   
  
"Well... I'd be happy to show you around. And since I am a high ranking executive, it would be in your best interest to get to know me..."   
  
He says in his cocky tone as he inflates his ego. He's kind of high ranking, but not so high ranking that he gets invited to executive meetings.   
  
"That would be nice.. the only problem is... I don't have clearance to any floors above this one.."   
  
She says as she starts in with her sweet, innocent voice, knowing that if this guy is as important as he says he is, she might be able to trick him into giving her his Keycard. The guy pulls out a Keycard and speaks:  
  
"No problem, we can use this, I have clearance as high as the 66th floor."   
  
She smiles, thinking of how to get the Keycard out of his hands without having to do anything with him. While all this is going on, Cloud and Barret have stopped looking and are now watching Tifa as she uses her female charm on this poor loser. Cloud is mentally laughing, thinking this guy has no chance and yet he keeps trying and Barret is about to burst into laughter.   
  
"You know.. I could really go for something to drink, could you please go get me something?"   
  
She says in a cute tone.. she's working this guy.   
  
"Sure thing.. I'll also get something... here, hold onto this while I get the stuff.. since my hands will be full.."   
  
He says as he hands her the Keycard and then walks off to go get something to drink... leaving her alone with the Keycard. She turns and sees Cloud and Barret and walks over to them looking victorious.  
  
"I got a Keycard..."   
  
Tifa says in a triumphant tone. She then notices that Cloud has a small smile on his face, or could it be a smirk?  
  
"We know you did... you manipulated that poor sap..."  
  
Tifa smirks and then replies;  
  
"Call it what you want.. but I'm the one who got a Keycard."   
  
Cloud walks toward the elevator and speaks;  
  
"I got word that an executive meeting is being held on the 66th floor. We should go and check it out... we might learn where Aeris is being held."   
  
Barret and Tifa follow Cloud to the elevator. He then pushes the button and as the doors open they all get in. Tifa then inserts the Keycard in the slot and that now familiar female voice is heard;   
  
"You have clearance to the 66th floor."   
  
Tifa pulls out the Keycard and Cloud pushes the button marked "66." The door closes and the elevator goes up as that poor sap comes back holding two cups in his hands. He then stands there, wondering where Tifa went.  
  
  
Chapter 13: The Meeting  
  
  
The elevator stops and the doors open. Cloud, Tifa and Barret walk out into a rather large floor. The floor is broken up into 7 rooms. The one in the very center is the largest.. it's the executive meeting room. It holds a massive table that can easily sit 30 or more people. There are 6 lamps on the table each about 5 feet apart, they give off a soft greenish light. There are about 12 other lights mounted on the walls, 4 near the door, 6 on the walls, 3 on each side, and 2 more near a window on the North wall. At the North end of the table is a chair larger then others, that is were President ShinRa sits.   
  
The meeting is already in session as some voices are heard through the door, but you can't make them out. Cloud goes to the door and tries to listen in but all he hears is;  
  
"Mhpejdkshjfhjdjd"   
  
Or something of that nature.  
  
"Damn... can't make out what they're saying..."   
  
Cloud says in his frustration. Some foot steps are heard coming toward them and a voice or two.   
  
"Did you hear those voices in the bathroom or was it just me?"   
  
One voice asks in an attempt to make sure that he's not going insane.   
  
"Nope.. I heard it as well...."   
  
Another voice says, confirming that the other is not insane as he had once thought. The foot steps seem to end and the sound of a door opening is heard and then the footsteps are heard for a moment and then the sound of a door closing is heard.   
  
"Voices in the bathroom....."   
  
Cloud says, back in his thinking stance.   
  
"Maybe somehow the voice of the ShinRa vermin can be heard in the bathroom."   
  
Barret says in a rare moment of enlightenment.   
  
"I was just thinking almost the same thing Barret...."   
  
Cloud says as he starts to walk to the left.  
  
"I want hear these voices for myself..."   
  
Tifa says as she follows Cloud, and Barret just follows them. So they walk, each time they pass a door they look to see if it's marked "BATHROOM," and finally, at the end of the hallway, they reach the bathroom. Cloud opens the door and walks in, checking to see if it's empty and as fate would have it, not a person is seen within the walls of the bathroom.   
  
"Alright guys come on in.."   
  
Cloud says while in the bathroom, and Tifa and Barret both enter. They start to hear some faint voices and Cloud looks around. He then opens one of the stall doors and then he look above the toilet and sees an air duct.   
  
"Must be where the voices are coming from..."   
  
He says as he gets on top of the toilet and pushes the vent up and to the left.   
  
"Cloud... you're going to make us crawl around in the air ducts aren't you?"   
  
Tifa asks as she look up at him.   
  
"Good to see you're on the same page as I am..."   
  
Cloud says as he climbs into the air duct.   
  
"Damn man... I wonder if I'm gonna fit in that tiny hole..."   
  
Barret says as he walks up to the stall. Tifa hops on the toilet and reaches up with no luck.. she's about two inches too short even when she jumps up.   
  
"I could use some help here.."   
  
Tifa says in a frustrated voice. Cloud turns around and pokes his spiky head through the air duct. He then looks at her and smirks;  
  
"A little too short for the job I see Tif."   
  
"Very funny.. now help me up."   
  
She says with an annoyed tone as she looks up at him. He lowers his right arm toward her and she grabs a hold of it. She then starts to use it as a piece of rope and Cloud then gets a pained look on his face and shouts;  
  
"Oww.. ow! Tifa that hurts! You're to heavy to use my arm as a piece of rope."   
  
"HOW RUDE!!!"  
  
Tifa says as she finally gets into the air duct, giving Cloud a pissed off look. Cloud crawls away in a hurry and then holds his poor elbow and shoulder.   
  
"Awright kids.. stop playin' around."  
  
Barret says as he gets onto the toilet and then grabs a hold of the air duct. Cloud and Tifa both start crawling as Barret gets in. They head toward the voices and finally come to an air vent. Upon looking down they see meeting room.  
  
Below them they see President ShinRa sitting nearest to the window. He's a short man with blond hair, he wears a red suit that doesn't really look all that good on him.   
  
To his right sits Palmer, one of his "yes men". He's a cowardly, plump, old balding man who wears a gray suit.   
  
Next to Palmer is Heidagger, a semi-plump man with a beard that wears a green suit, he's the guy that Tseng, leader of the Turks, reports to, and he's also one of President ShinRa's "yes men."  
  
To Heidagger's left is a blond haired woman in a red dress. Her name is Scarlet, the only female among the group. She acts like she's constantly having her period most of the time, she's the head of Weapons Development.   
  
Finally, sitting next to Scarlet is Reeve, head of Urban Development. He seems to be the only one who has a problem with ShinRa's evil doings.. to a certain extent that is.   
  
"What is the estimated damage caused by the fall of the Sector 7 plate section?"   
  
President ShinRa asks, looking at Reeve.   
  
"The estimated cost is 7 billion Gil... due to the fact that we set up so many factories before it fell... the estimated cost to rebuild is.."   
  
Reeve is about to finish when he's cut off;  
  
"We're not rebuilding.. now that we have the Ancient, she will lead us to the Promised Land, and that's where we shall build Neo-Midgar.... raise Mako rates by 15% in all areas."   
  
President ShinRa says in his normal, powerful tone.   
  
"Rate hike, rate hike, rate hike!!! And please put in the space program as well!!"  
  
Palmer says as he jumps up and down, seemingly happy by the news.   
  
"Scarlet and Heidagger will spilt up the profits."   
  
President ShinRa says as he looks at Palmer.   
  
"Oh pooh...."   
  
Palmer says as he slumps back into his chair.   
  
"But sir... won't the rate hike make the people lose faith in the company?"   
  
Reeve asks in his concerned tone of voice and President ShinRa shakes his head and speaks;  
  
"No.. the ignored people will trust ShinRa Inc. even more."   
  
Suddenly the door opens and a man in a white lab coat and glasses enters.  
  
"Ah Hojo.. just the man I wanted to see... tell me the status of the Ancient."  
  
President ShinRa says as the man closes the door behind himself and then turns, facing those in the room.  
  
"As a specimen she's rather poor.. I've done a few tests and so far there is an 18% difference between her and her mother.. however our tests will most likely take 120 years to complete.. we need a specimen that can last that long."   
  
Hojo spoke in a semi-grim tone, which causes President ShinRa's face to get a serious look.  
  
"And how do we do that? The Ancient we have and her mother are the last ones on this planet..."   
  
President ShinRa trails off as Hojo nods and then speaks;  
  
"That's true, so we would have to breed her to get one.. but it couldn't be a human, that would only cause further destruction of a pure Ancient bloodline."   
  
President ShinRa doesn't seem pleased with this news.  
  
"So how could you breed her without the child being tainted with more human blood?"   
  
President ShinRa asks, which causes Hojo to pace a bit, he always does this for some reason. He finally stops after a few moments of this pacing and looks at them all and speaks in a very 'matter-of-fact' tone;  
  
"Very simple... we just use a male that isn't really human, and I just happen to know of one.."   
  
President ShinRa looks confused and then it comes to him;  
  
"You mean the 'boy' don't you?"   
  
Scarlet laughs a little and then speaks;  
  
"First he's our weapon and now he'll be used like a stud-horse."   
  
Hojo gets an annoyed look on his face, he doesn't like the idea of Kyle being compared to a horse. He controls his anger and speaks in his 'normal' tone;  
  
"I wouldn't compare him to a horse, but in a manner of speaking yes. They do seem to get along rather well, and I am interested in seeing what powers their child could have."   
  
President ShinRa smiles at the thought of having another powerful weapon to do his bidding and he smiles as he replies;  
  
"Do whatever is needed to get them to produce a child Hojo."   
  
Hojo simply nods and walks to the door.  
  
"Understood.."   
  
Hojo says as he opens the door and then leaves quickly.  
  
"All right.. that's all for today.."   
  
President ShinRa says as he stands up. The others stand and they all leave, talking amongst themselves.  
  
  
Chapter 14: Jenova and Red XIII   
  
  
"I wonder who this "boy" is... and why he's so special..."   
  
Cloud says as he, Tifa and Barret still look down on the meeting room.   
  
"Well... lets go find out shall we?"   
  
Tifa says as she starts to crawl backward toward where they had entered.   
  
"I don't care who he is, jus as long as we get Aeris and get the Hell outta' here.."   
  
Barret says as he too crawls backward. They all get out of the air duct and walk out of the bathroom. They then walk down the hall and come to the front of the meeting room, where Hojo just happens to be standing. He's seemingly searching for something in his lab coat as Cloud, Tifa and Barret see him and hide behind a wall.   
  
"I wonder what he's looking for..."   
  
Cloud says in a low voice.   
  
"We should follow him.. he might lead us to Aeris..."   
  
Tifa says as she watches Hojo, who finally pulls out what he was looking for, a Keycard. He then starts to walk away and Cloud, Tifa and Barret slowly start to follow him. Hojo, whom is now followed not-so-closely behind by Cloud and the others, walks into a room, and then up the stairs. Once on the next floor he inserts the Keycard and the door opens. Hojo then walks out of the stair-case room, and then Cloud, Tifa and Barret slowly make their way up the stairs and out the door, which, as luck would have it, was left open by Hojo.   
  
The 67th floor seems larger when compared to the others, as it's broken up into 2 sections.   
  
The first half is made up of 1 large room that contains monitors and computers, as well as many prison cells, which is the building very own jail.  
  
The other half contains a room that controls two special elevators. The first is used to lift specimens to the northern part of the 68th floor, while the second is used to lift and lower Kyle's tube, but other tubes can be placed on it and lifted like his was. This section contains a few specimens, and other things in boxes and such.   
  
Hojo walks into the second half of the floor and stops in-front of a glass tube. Cloud, Tifa and Barret hide behind a wall section and watch as Hojo taps on a glass tube that holds a creature that looks like a lion, only it has red fur and the tip of it's tail looks like it's on fire. It has what looks like scars and a "XIII" on one of it's legs. A guy in a dark blue suit walks into the room, and makes his way to Hojo, whom has turned to face him.  
  
"I want this specimen transported upstairs. Use the elevator that was used to lift Pisces."   
  
Hojo says as he looks at the tube that contains the lion creature. The guy nods and replies;  
  
"Yes sir."   
  
Before walking away from Hojo.  
  
"We'll just see how Pisces reacts when she's threatened..."   
  
Hojo says as he walks to the second elevator in that room. He gets on and is lifted to the next floor and Cloud and the others come out of hiding. Tifa walks up to the tube that holds the lion creature and taps it as well, it appears to be asleep.  
  
"I wonder what he meant by 'how Pisces reacts when she's threatened...' do you guys think this "Pisces" could be the same person that was in that story Aeris' mom told us?"   
  
Tifa says as she continues to tap the tube, but the creature doesn't move. Cloud looks around a little and sees what looks like a pressure chamber. He then replies;  
  
"Maybe..."  
  
As he walks closer to the chamber. He notices a plate, which on it reads;   
  
"Jenova"  
  
Cloud then looks into the chamber and sees what looks like the body of a woman and has no head. He then seemingly gets freaked out by this and holds his head, dropping to his knees. Suddenly, Cloud is pulled into a flash back... he's inside a Mako Reactor, standing behind a younger Tifa, who is holding the head of her dead father.  
  
"Sephiroth.. ShinRa... SOLDIER.... Mako Reactors... I hate them all!!"   
  
The younger version of Tifa screams as she gets up, holding what looks like Sephiroth's Masamune, a nasty looking 6 foot long Katana. She then runs forward, toward another section of the Mako Reactor and then suddenly it all ends.. and he's "back" in the ShinRa building. Barret looks at him in shock and speaks;  
  
"Yo.. you awright man?"   
  
Tifa turns and looks at Cloud. She then runs over to him and lucky happens to catch him as he falls backward.   
  
"Jenova.... Sephiroth's.... so... they've brought it here...."   
  
Cloud says in a low tone.   
  
"Jenova?"  
  
Barret asks as he turns and looks into the chamber.   
  
"Where the Hell is it's head? This thing is stupid..."   
  
He says as he turns back to Cloud, who has finally regained his control. Cloud then stands up, shaking off those old feelings.  
  
"I suppose.. anyway... lets get going... I have a feeling Aeris is close..."   
  
Cloud says in a low voice as he starts to walk toward the elevator, and he's followed by Tifa and Barret, but just before they get to it, Cloud stops as something to the right has catches his eye. He turns and walks over to the object, which he discovers is a green crystal.   
  
"A piece of Materia... what is it doing here..."  
  
He asks himself as he places it in a pocket for later use. Barret and Tifa have already gotten to the elevator and are waiting for Cloud.  
  
"Hurry your spiky ass up!"   
  
Barret yells, he doesn't like waiting. Cloud walks to the elevator and they all get in. Cloud then pushes the button, as he always does and the ol' elevator moves upward. 


	4. Chapters 15-18

Chapter 15: The Unleashing  
  
  
The elevator comes to a stop on the 68th floor, which is yet another large floor. It contains a large tube near the left wall, which is used to hold specimens, and at the current moment holds Aeris and Kyle, incased in his tube prison. A "bridge" like platform lies between the larger tube and the rest of the floor, as the tube is on the other side of a large trench or moat, used to stop a specimen from reaching the other side if it escaped and the bridge was retracted. The walls are lined with walkways, all leading to an area that houses the controls to the tube, elevator and the bridge. These controls are behind a large casing that's made of some form of glass, and beyond it all is a long hallway that leads to a door. This door connects to yet another hallway, this one smaller, which leads to a staircase that leads upward to the 69th floor, and downward to the 67th floor and lower.  
  
A man stands behind the controls and Hojo is standing on the bridge, the side closer to the controls. Cloud, Tifa and Barret come out of the elevator and walk toward Hojo, who is now staring at them.  
  
"What do you people want?"   
  
Hojo asks, his eyes narrowing as he notices Cloud running toward the bridge, as he noticed that Aeris was in the tube on the other side.  
  
"Cloud.. I knew you would come to save me... "  
  
Aeris says as she stands up. Kyle, on the other hand, appears to be sleeping.  
  
"Let her go now!"  
  
Cloud says as he turns to Hojo, his hand on the hilt of his sword. Upon seeing this, Hojo smirks in his own twisted way and then speaks;   
  
"Or what.. you'll kill us? If you do, who will be left to operate this equipment?"   
  
"Ugh...."   
  
Cloud mumbles as he pulls his hand away from the hilt of his sword.  
  
"That's right.. use that brain of yours for once.."  
  
Hojo says in a cocky voice. He then looks over his shoulder and shouts;   
  
"Do it now you moron!"   
  
Suddenly the man behind the controls taps a few buttons and the elevator moves. The bottom of the tube opens as another specimen is lifted upward. Aeris backs away as she sees that the "lion" creature is now standing but a few feet away from her. The "beast" acts wildly as it growls and bares it's teeth at a now scared Aeris. Kyle's eyes open, and he looks at the creature but even as it acts like it's going to hurt or even kill Aeris, he doesn't try to break free and help her. He senses something deeper, he can sense it's true intent.   
  
"Cloud, help me!"  
  
Aeris yells as the lion creature growls at her. As she moves away from it, Tifa looks at Hojo with contempt in her eyes as she speaks;  
  
"What's the point of this?"   
  
Hojo simply looks at her with a smirk and replies;  
  
"I'm lending a helping hand to these 'animals'! Why, without my help they'd die out."  
  
"Aeris isn't an animal, she's a human being!"   
  
Tifa says as her anger grows. Hojo just scoffs as Cloud looks around, trying to find some way of freeing her.  
  
"Barret isn't there anything you can do?"   
  
Cloud says as he looks at him. Barret runs over to the bridge crossing it. He then stands in-front of tube, lifts his gun-arm and starts to fire at the door unit, causing sparks to fly. Hojo, seeing this, runs across the bridge and shouts;  
  
"My specimens!"  
  
The door suddenly opens and the "lion" creature jumps out of the tube and it lands on Hojo, knocking him over. It then growls, bears its teeth and looks like it's about to claw his scared ass to death.   
  
"This isn't a normal specimen.. this is a pissed specimen!"   
  
Hojo yells in a fear-filled voice. The man behind the controls, in an attempt to help Hojo, pushes some buttons which causes the elevator to start up once more. Aeris runs out of the tube as the elevator moves, and Kyle instantly starts to sense something. He starts to thrash a little, trying to break the tube.   
  
The "lion" creature jumps off Hojo, who crawls away and then runs like the coward he is, and then it speaks;  
  
"It's a rather strong creature.. I'm willing to help you fight it."   
  
Tifa looks utterly shocked, but manages to speak;  
  
"It..it...it talked..."   
  
The "lion" creature looks at her and replies;  
  
"I'll talk all you want later miss.. right now we have a battle to get ready for."   
  
Cloud looks at it and speaks in a somewhat odd tone;  
  
"What's your name?"   
  
"It doesn't matter what you call me, Hojo has named me Red XIII, call me what you wish.."   
  
The creature, now known as Red XIII says in a calm voice. Cloud and the others just now notice Kyle.   
  
"Aeris... who.. is that?"   
  
Cloud asks and she looks at him with a worried look.  
  
"An old friend... we can't let him stay in there alone!"   
  
Aeris says as HO512, another specimen rises into the tube. The beast stands well over ten feet tall and it looks like a random collection of body parts. It has two heads, it's arms are long, over four feet in length. It's legs are about five feet in length and they're a deep blue, just like it's arms. Of it's two heads, one is the same color as it's body and is only made up of 2 eyes, while the second is just its mouth on its shoulder.   
  
Kyle's eyes focus on this beast, and a rare look of anger crosses his face. The monsters eyes look right at the Kyle as it raises its hands, it's getting ready to attack. Aeris runs toward the tube, in hopes of letting Kyle free, but just before she reaches it, HO512 smacks her away with one mighty swing of it's arm.   
  
As she flies back Kyle's rage is building within him, his eyes narrow and look right at HO512. Once Aeris lands it turns and walks toward her, and Kyle tries to scream as he pounds on the tube, but it's of no use as it doesn't even show signs of cracking. While all of this is going on, his rage keeps building, causing his "power" to come out of it's vegetative state. HO512 stands above Aeris with it's hand on her back, keeping her pinned to the cold floor. As Cloud and the others get ready to attack, it slowly starts to crush her small body into the metal. As he watches, Kyle starts to punch the tube, but still with no luck, but it's the scream that escapes her gentle lips that pushes him to the breaking point.. and beyond it.  
  
Upon hearing this scream Kyle loses all control over his power. As he silently screams in anger, energy bursts from his body in the form of a shockwave that slams into zexonyte based glass, causing it to explode outward. As the liquid flies from the tube, tiny shards of the glass also fly and hit HO512, cutting it's body. Almost as soon as the tube has been shattered, he pulls the mask off of his face, ripping the feeding tube out of his body, causing some blood to come from his mouth. He throws it on the floor and looks at HO512 with such calm, placid eyes, but within these very same eyes is anger, hatred and rage.  
  
"Let her go now."  
  
He says in a deep, calm, angry tone as his power starts to build up. As he stands there his body is seemingly engulfed in white, semi-transparent "flames." While his body becomes engulfed his hair and clothing are being pushed upwards by his own energy and as his clothing and hair is being manipulated by his energy, they're also being dried by heat that's being created by his energy. While all of this is going on something even more amazing is starting to happen, as his body is now starting to fold and bend gravity itself, which is causing small waves and ripples to form near him and it's also causing the metal plates under his feet to crack and fold.  
  
His eyes narrow as he stares at HO512, the object of his hatred. With each second that passes he becomes even more angry, and as his rage builds so does his power.  
  
"I SAID LET HER GO NOW!!!!!"  
  
He suddenly screams at the top of his lungs as another "shockwave" explodes from his body, cracking and then shattering the larger tube. As HO512 is shoved forward by this blast of power, Cloud, Barret, Tifa and Red XII stand frozen in place due mostly to fear of the energy Kyle's giving off.   
  
As HO512 removes its hand from Aeris, it turns and looks at Kyle as it gets ready to attack. With a sudden burst of speed it charges at him with its right arm aimed for his chest, and as this beast charges, Kyle just stands his ground, letting it come toward him. Just as its hand reaches him, Kyle vanishes and then reappears behind HO512, and slams his elbow into the beasts spine. As the beast cries out in pain Kyle drops down and then leg sweeps it, causing it to fall to the ground. As it falls he jumps up and then backwards, turning himself to face the beast as it to gets up.   
  
As all this is going on, Aeris slowly gets up and then turns as she hears the beasts unholy cry as it turns and charges at Kyle.  
  
"Kyle be careful!"  
  
She shouts suddenly, causing Kyle to look over his shoulder at her. With his attention turned away from the beast, it picks up speed as it reaches him. As Kyle turns his attention back to the beast, it hits him with a powerful swing of it's arm, sending him flying. Aeris gasps as Kyle flies at a wall, but suddenly Kyle just stops and he floats in the air.  
  
As Kyle wipes some blood from the corner of his mouth something flashes in his mind.. an attack. He then starts to float higher as he brings his hands above his head, holding his left palm just below his right. He then starts to concentrate, as he does so a small ball starts to form just above his palm, and it slowly starts to grow. He then looks at HO512 and smirks wickedly, a smirk similar to Sephiroth's.   
  
"MASENKO!"  
  
Kyle says in a scream as he brings his hands down quickly, throwing the "ball" at HO512 with force. As the energy ball flies toward it, HO512 brings it's arms up forming a barrier, but the ball is much too powerful. As it hits the beasts arms it tears through them with ease and then it makes short work of the rest of the body, blasting 99% of it into nothingness.   
  
As the beast is torn apart, the others watch in shock and disbelief as this huge monster is killed with but one attack. Soon after the beast is all but dust, Kyle's power starts to fall as his breath becomes heavy. He lowers himself down onto the cracked floor he then falls to his knees and the "flames" slowly fade away, and the air around him drops to room temperature as gravity returns to normal. As he looks at what remains of the creature an odd look forms on his face, a look that is not expected. This look isn't one of hatred for the beast, nor is it pride for the fact that with one attack he killed it, and it's not even a look of shock or wonder as to the very fact that he could use such an attack, it's a look of true pain. As the truth of his first kill strikes his mind he starts to cry and he lowers his head.   
  
He hates the fact that he just killed a living, breathing, thinking being. As he cries the other watch him, shocked that he's showing pain. While the other are too scared to move, Aeris then walks over to him, kneels just in-front of the crying warrior and hugs him, trying to make him feel better. Much like what a mother would do while trying to comfort her child, Aeris hugs him tightly, letting him cry on her shoulder, all the while telling him that everything will be alright.  
  
  
Chapter 16: The Split   
  
  
"I.. had no idea that this was the 'power' Hojo spoke of whenever he would 'visit' him..."   
  
Red XIII says in a low, shocked tone as he looks at Kyle. He never expected Kyle to be able to do anything that he has just seen with his very own eyes.  
  
"If they were to use him as a weapon... they could conquer the planet in a matter of weeks..."   
  
Cloud mumbles in a low voice as he stares at Kyle. As the other look on, Kyle sniffles a little and then he looks up at Aeris. With a shaky voice he starts to speak;  
  
"I.. I.. I killed it... I... shouldn't of don-"   
  
But before he can finish his sentence, Aeris cuts him off;   
  
"Shh.... you had no other choice then to kill it. If you didn't, it would of kept on attacking you, and then the rest of us."  
  
He blinks slightly and replies;  
  
"I know.. but I still feel bad for it."   
  
As his senses return to normal, Kyle moves his head and looks over his shoulder at the others, whom he can know sense clearly.  
  
"Are they your friends?"   
  
He asks Aeris in a small voice as he looks at them all  
  
"He seems... so innocent.. almost like.. a child..."   
  
Tifa says in a low tone as she looks at Cloud.   
  
"Yes.. they risked their lives by coming here to save me..."   
  
Aeris says as she looks down at him. Kyle then turns his head back around and looks up at her.  
  
"I.. feel an odd energy coming from them, and something else... it's fear.."   
  
He says in a lower then normal tone.  
  
"They're just shocked by your power.."   
  
Aeris says as she tries to make him feel like they're more shocked of his power then scared of him.  
  
"No... I can sense their fear.."   
  
He says in a sad tone as he tries to stand up, and Aeris lets go of him, allowing him to do so. As he starts to stand up, the others back away from him slightly. Without the rush of adrenaline that he had during the battle, his legs shake slightly as he tries to stand, because he's spent so many years within tube, floating in that damned liquid, his leg muscles are weak. Aeris stands next to him, ready to grab him in-case he falls and needs somebody to support him.  
  
"So Kyle.. what are you going to do.. now that you're free?"   
  
Aeris asks as she places her small hand on his shoulder.   
  
"I.. don't know.. I don't remember having a family or a home. All I remember is this lab, that tube.. and the darkness."  
  
Kyle says in a small voice. Cloud, who has finally built up enough courage to do so, speaks;   
  
"You can come with us I guess, we.. can't just leave you here."   
  
Even though this can be taken as a act of kindness, he really just wants to take ShinRa's greatest weapon away from them.  
  
"Do you.. mean it?"   
  
Kyle asks as he looks at Cloud as a small smile forms on his face.  
  
"Of course I do."  
  
Cloud says with a nod. He then turns to the others and speaks;  
  
"You don't mind, do you?"   
  
"I don't mind..."  
  
Tifa says as she looks at Kyle.  
  
"It would be wrong to leave him here, so I don't mind."   
  
Red XIII says as he looks at Cloud.   
  
Barret looks at Kyle and then looks over to Cloud and replies;  
  
"I don' have a problem wit it."   
  
Kyle looks at the others and then Cloud and blinks a few times as he remembers something.  
  
"By the way.. my name is Kyle or 'Pisces' as some have called me."   
  
Cloud nods slightly and then speaks;  
  
"I'm Cloud.."   
  
"That's Tifa."  
  
He says as he points to her. He then points to Barret and speaks;  
  
"That's Barret."  
  
He then points to Red XIII;  
  
"Tha-"   
  
"Red XIII... it's.. nice to see that you're free as well."   
  
Kyle says as he cuts off Cloud. Red nods in a show of respect and replies;  
  
"Nice to see you're finally free of that tube."  
  
"I hate to interrupt you, but we should get going."   
  
Cloud says as he looks at Kyle. Kyle then nods as he walks completely out of the tube, followed closely by Aeris.  
  
"I suggest that we break up into groups, it would be easy for two or more groups to make it out rather then one large group."   
  
Red XIII says as he looks at Cloud, who nods.  
  
"Good idea... now who will go with who..."  
  
Cloud says as he gets in his thinking stance. Aeris looks at Kyle and then at Cloud and speaks softly;   
  
"Whatever group Kyle is in.. I wish to be in as well.."   
  
"Fine then, the first group will be myself, Kyle and Aeris. I don't think I need to state whose in the other group."  
  
Cloud says as he walks over to Kyle and Aeris.  
  
"So where shall we meet?"  
  
Red asks as he turns to Cloud.   
  
"The 66th floor.."   
  
Kyle says in a low voice.   
  
"Why the 66th floor?"   
  
Tifa asks as she looks at him. Kyle looks at her and replies;  
  
"I.. just picked a random floor.."   
  
"Alright.. let's split up. We shall take the elevator down and then head for the 66th floor. You guys take the stairs, and don't get caught.. I don't want to have to save you three."  
  
Cloud says as he looks at them all. Tifa, Barret and Red head for the stairs as Cloud, Aeris and Kyle head for the elevator. As they start to walk, Aeris grabs a hold of Kyle's hand and holds it, which strikes Cloud as odd. As they all get into the elevator Cloud pushes the down button, and it starts to move.  
  
  
Chapter 17: Captured  
  
  
Once the elevator reaches the 67th floor, Cloud, Aeris and Kyle exit it and start to walk. As they walk Kyle looks around and then sees the panel. Once he sees it he pulls his hand away from Aeris and runs over to it, it appears he's gotten the hang of walking and running. As Kyle runs Cloud and Aeris follow him and stop behind him when he stops.  
  
"What's wrong?"   
  
Aeris asks as she walks up to him. Kyle stares at the panel for a few moments and then replies;  
  
"Behind this panel, is where they used to put my tube.."  
  
"Once we leave you can put those memories behind you and form new ones.."   
  
Aeris says as she takes his hand once more and squeezes it gently. In response, he squeezes her hand, but not so hard that he'd hurt her. Meanwhile on the 66th floor, Barret, Tifa and Red XIII are standing next to the elevators, waiting for the others to show up.  
  
"Where the Hell are they?"   
  
Barret says as he kinda paces about.   
  
"Calm down, they'll be here soon..."   
  
Tifa says as she leans against a wall. Suddenly Red stands up, and as he does so his fur stands on end and he growls, he can smell something he doesn't like.  
  
"What's the matter Red?"   
  
Tifa asks as she looks at him. Red looks around, sniffing with his nose and replies;  
  
"Someone is near.. and I don't like the smell of them.."   
  
Suddenly a deep, cocky sounding voice comes from above them;  
  
"Well, well, it looks like the big bad cat doesn't like the way I smell.. well isn't that a shame.."   
  
Red growls as he looks up and suddenly a man jumps down from a shadowed area of the ceiling. This man stands at about 5'11, his hair is fire red and some of it is pulled back into a pony tail. The cuffs and collar of his black suit are not folded and tend to hang where they please. The white shirt under the jacket of the suit looks like it was thrown on the floor in a pile overnight, the top 2 buttons are undone and he wears no tie.   
  
Once this man lands he hits Red with his Electro-mag Rod, which sends a few thousand volts of electricity into his body, which causes him to screams in pain as he falls over. The man then smirks as Barret starts to charge at him, and he simply moves out of the way.   
  
"You're too slow big man!"   
  
He once again says in a cocky tone as he swings his rod into Barret's back, hitting him with a couple thousand volts of electric energy. Much like Red, Barret screams as he falls over, and just as Barret falls, Tifa slams her fist into the mans gut and as he bends at the middle, she slams her knee into his face. As he stumbles backward, he looks at her, smirks and speaks;  
  
"Not bad.. for a woman...."   
  
As Tifa looks at him, she gets into a fighting stance.  
  
"I remember you Reno... you're the Turk that set that bomb to explode and killed all those innocent people in Sector 7!"  
  
She says as the man, named Reno, stands up straight. He smirks as he wipes some blood from his nose, and he feels sore from that punch and knee shot, as well as the battle he fought against Cloud, Tifa and Barret before Sector 7 was crushed. He then replies;  
  
"It's too bad that I'll most likely end up killing you if you fight me, I could get used to having you around. So then.. how about you just give up and we could become real good 'friends.'"  
  
"In your dreams.. I would never give into you..."   
  
Tifa replies as she gets ready to attack him. His smirk grows bigger and he then laughs as the elevator door behind her opens. Before she can turn her head to see who is behind her, she's grabbed from behind and held in such a way that her arms are at her sides so she can't fight back but she struggles to get free. While the man who has a hold of her wears the same suit that Reno does, his is much neater, as he wears a tie, his white shirt is fully buttoned up, and his cuffs and collar are fully under control. But unlike Reno, he wears a pair of sunglasses and gloves.  
  
"I was wondering when you would get here Rude, I took two of em' out. I was getting ready to take care of our little 'friend' when you showed up."   
  
Reno says as he looks at Rude, who stays silent even as Tifa tries to get away from him. Reno walks up to her and puts his hand on her face, smirks a little more and speaks;  
  
"Looks like we caught ourselves a nice prize.."  
  
She then moves her head away from his hand. As she does that she brings her mouth to his hand and bites it, hard enough to draw blood. He then pulls his hand away from her mouth and smacks her rather hard with the same hand, leaving blood on her cheek.  
  
"You little bitch, now you're going to pay for that!"   
  
He says as he brings his rod up and then slams it into her stomach, which causes her to bend at the middle, and her eyes close from the pain. He then turns it on full power, causing well over 60,000 volts to surge through her body, causing her to scream loudly for a few moments, and she falls unconscious as Reno pulls the rod away from her.   
  
"Was that necessary Reno?"  
  
Rude asks in a low, calm, controlled voice. Reno looks at him and replies;  
  
"Yes it was, now help me with the other two."   
  
As Reno finishes what he was saying, some footsteps are heard coming toward them. They then stop and then a voice is heard;  
  
"I congratulate you on how swiftly you have taken care of those three. However, Cloud, the Ancient and Pisces are still free within the building, and they must be captured at all costs. But I want you two to remember that when they're captured there is to be no harm caused to either the Ancient or Pisces."  
  
The voice belongs to Tseng, the leader of the Turks. He is around the same height as Reno, he wears his suit like Rude does, and he too has gloves. His hair is by far the longest of any other Turk.  
  
"Yes sir.. we understand."  
  
Rude says as he picks up Tifa and slings her limp body over his shoulder.  
  
"I'll take out care of the moron Cloud and make sure the Ancient and Pisces don't get away."  
  
Reno says in a cocky tone as he turns and looks at Tseng.  
  
"No, I will take care of them, you two shall bring these three up to President ShinRa and make sure that they do now get away."  
  
Tseng says in a calm voice as he looks at Reno.  
  
"But Sir.."   
  
Reno starts, but is quickly cut off by Tseng, whose eyes have narrowed;  
  
"You heard me Reno."   
  
With that said, Reno simply nods. He turns and grabs a hold of Barret while Rude grabs a hold of Red's tail. Rude then walks into the elevator, followed by Reno, whose now dragging Barret. As he enters the elevator, Reno hits a button and the door closes and the elevator makes it's way up to the 69th floor. As the elevator starts to move, Tseng makes his way to a corner, waiting to ambush Cloud, Aeris and Kyle.  
  
"Come on you two, let's get going before we're caught..."   
  
Cloud says as he turns and starts to walk. Kyle nods and then turns along with Aeris.  
  
"Alright.. lets get going, this place depresses me.."   
  
Aeris says as she start to walk, pulling Kyle along. As they walk, they can't help but notice how dead the floor is, nobody is around, there is no sound.. nothing is happening, it's eerie. Once they reach the stairs, they immediately start the trek down to the 66th floor. They walk out of the room that holds the stairs and head for the elevator. Suddenly Kyle stops moving and looks around a little, as if he's looking for something.  
  
"Something wrong?"   
  
Aeris asks as she looks over his shoulder at him. Kyle brings his attention to her, shakes his head and replies;  
  
"N..no.. nothings wrong..."   
  
Aeris blinks a little and then turns her head back around as she speaks;  
  
"Alright.. let's go then.."  
  
Kyle starts to move again, still being "pulled" along by Aeris. A few moments later they reach the elevator, and Cloud hits the down button and the elevator doors slowly slide open.  
  
"Shouldn't we wait for the others?"   
  
Kyle says as he looks at Cloud. Tseng, who was hiding all this time, comes from around the corner and walks up to them and speaks;  
  
"I'm afraid your friends were already here.. and were captured.."   
  
Kyle, Cloud and Aeris turn and look at Tseng, both with shock and surprise in their eyes. Kyle then suddenly stands in-front of Aeris, as if it's an instinct of his to protect her, and Cloud places his hand on the hilt of his sword.  
  
"I wouldn't do that.. if you were to try and fight me I'm afraid your friends will die..."   
  
Tseng says as he pulls out a cell phone and taps a few keys.  
  
"What the Hell do you mean by that?"   
  
Cloud says as he starts to draw the blade from its sheath. Tseng then holds toward them and they hear a familiar voice;  
  
"Let go of me now!"   
  
It's the voice of Barret. Tseng then stares at Cloud and speaks;  
  
"Reno, if they do not give up by the time I count to ten, I want you to kill them all, understand?"   
  
"Yes sir.."   
  
Reno says as the sound of clip is heard being snapped into a gun. Tseng then starts to count;  
  
"1...2..."   
  
"Stop.. I... I'll give myself up.."   
  
Kyle says as he looks at Tseng.   
  
"Please.. don't let any of them get hurt and I'll also give up..."   
  
Aeris says as she looks at the floor.  
  
"Good, now what about you Cloud?"   
  
Tseng says in a cold tone. He then goes back to counting;  
  
"3....4...5...6..."  
  
Cloud slowly places his sword back into its sheath and then he pulls his hand away from the hilt and speaks;  
  
"Alright.. I give up."   
  
Tseng smirks slightly and then speaks;  
  
"Reno, I shall be coming up with Cloud, the Ancient and Pisces. If they start any trouble, I'll tell you to kill the others, understand?"   
  
A moment passes and then Reno answers;  
  
"I got it sir.."  
  
Tseng motions to the elevator with his other hand and then speaks;  
  
"You should consider yourselves lucky that we didn't have orders to kill you and your friends. Now get in so I can bring you to meet with President ShinRa."  
  
With that said, Cloud, Aeris and Kyle enter the elevator, followed by Tseng. He then presses the up button. The doors then close and the elevator moves upwards.  
  
  
Chapter 18: Neo-Midgar and the Cetra  
  
  
Cloud, Barret, Kyle, Red XIII, Tifa and Aeris are brought into President ShinRa's office by Rude, Reno and Tseng. Cloud, Tifa and Barret's hands are handcuffed behind their backs, Red XIII has short chains that link his legs together, as to allow him only to walk, and Kyle and Aeris are free of chains and handcuffs, as they know that if they start trouble, the others might get hurt.  
  
The office is huge, as it takes up most of the 70th floor. The floor itself is made completely out of metal, as to prevent bullets from piercing it. Two staircases from the 69th floor and a door that leads to a Heli Pad are the only way to get into the office, for obvious security reasons. Huge windows line the walls, allowing a nice view of the plate below, the sky above and ocean that is not too far off. President ShinRa himself sits behind a massive desk, which appears to be in the shape of a hollow semi-circle, the area immediately around his chair has about 10 lights to provide more then adequate lighting, and there is a yet another light, this one a large desk lamp, just above his paper work.  
  
President ShinRa stands up and then walks around his desk as the Turks stop their prisoners and he speaks;  
  
"Ah it's.. what was your name again.. Avenue or something like that?"   
  
Barret gets pissed at that statement and yells;  
  
"It's AVALANCHE, never forget that!"   
  
President ShinRa looks rather amused as he stops in-front of them and replies;  
  
"Yes, yes.. sure.."  
  
Kyle blinks a few times and then looks at Pres. ShinRa and speaks;  
  
"So.. you're President ShinRa..."   
  
"Ah yes my boy, you must be Kyle, it's good to see that you're not harmed."   
  
Pres. ShinRa says as he looks at Kyle. Aeris turns her attention to the President and speaks;  
  
"What do you want with us?"   
  
"I only wanted you and Kyle back, the others I'll hold for a while until I can arrange a public execution for the fall of the Sector 7 plate."   
  
He says in a dark tone and then he starts to laugh wickedly.  
  
"You're the key to the Promised Land Aeris, it's said the Ancients, or rather the Cetra, will lead us to the Promised Land. A land that's rich and has much life... and if it's rich with life then..."   
  
Pres. ShinRa is cut off by Barret;  
  
"Then there's gotta be Mako!"   
  
Pres. ShinRa nods and then goes on;  
  
"And that's where our money sucking Mako Reactors will be placed, and Neo-Midgar, ShinRa's new pride and glory, shall be built."  
  
"But.. if you do that the land will die!"   
  
Barret says in a pissed tone. Red XIII looks at Pres. ShinRa and speaks;  
  
"I thought the Promised Land was just a myth."   
  
Pres. ShinRa laughs and then replies;  
  
"Well since we now have the last Ancient, we will find out."  
  
"And what about me? Am I still going to be used as your weapon?"   
  
Kyle asks in a questioning tone. Pres. ShinRa looks at him and replies;  
  
"We've put a lot of Gil into the Pisces Project, and I plan on getting my moneys worth."   
  
This causes Kyle's eyes to narrow.  
  
"I'm not your slave, I have just as many rights as you do."   
  
Kyle says in a semi-pissed tone, which causes Pres. ShinRa to laugh.  
  
"Property has no rights. Ever since ShinRa got a hold of you, you became MY property, never forget that I control you, that when I speak you will listen and obey me without question. If you don't, your little Ancient friend will suffer. I know that you two are very close, so if you don't follow orders she will suffer. Now then boy, get on your knee and vow your loyalty to me."   
  
Pres. ShinRa says in a commanding voice, but Kyle doesn't move. Pres. ShinRa's eyes narrow and then he smirks as he makes a single motion with his right hand. Reno makes his way behind Aeris and twists her arm, causing her to yelp suddenly. Kyle then looks back at her and his eyes go wide and he speaks;  
  
"Stop it.. you're hurting her."   
  
"He'll stop as soon as you get on your knees and vow your loyalty to me."   
  
Pres. ShinRa replies. As soon as Reno twists her arm more, Kyle turns his gaze back to Pres. ShinRa and then he falls to one knee.  
  
"I.. I promise to be.. your... weapon... now please make him stop..."   
  
Kyle says as he looks at the floor. As soon as Pres. ShinRa nods, Reno lets her arm go, letting Aeris pulls her arm around and holds it. Pres. ShinRa then looks down at Kyle and speaks;  
  
"See.. that wasn't so hard, now was it?"   
  
Kyle stays silent as he keeps his eyes fixed on the floor. Pres. ShinRa gets a little pissed and then speaks;  
  
"When I ask you a question you will answer."  
  
Kyle brings his eyes up so he's looking up at him and answers;  
  
"No it wasn't hard.."   
  
"No it wasn't hard.. what? When you answer me you will address me as Sir..."   
  
Pres. ShinRa says in his cocky tone. Kyle replies in a low tone;  
  
"No.. it wasn't hard Sir...."   
  
"See, it wasn't so hard being a good boy and doing what you're told."  
  
Pres. ShinRa says as he looks at Kyle. He then looks at Reno, Rude and Tseng and speaks once more;  
  
"I want you to lock all but Kyle up, as he will stay here. And remember, if any harm comes to the Ancient, well.. you know what will happen don't you?"  
  
The three Turks, who snap to attention, speak in unison;  
  
"Yes Sir."   
  
They then lead Cloud, Tifa, Barret, Red XIII and Aeris toward a staircase.  
  
"Hojo, come out now.."  
  
Pres. ShinRa says as he turns to one of the pillars that's used to hold the ceiling up. Hojo comes out from behind it and looks at Kyle, who is now looking at him.   
  
"So Kyle.. it's time you learned how to be a good weapon..."   
  
Hojo says as a dark smirk forms on his face. 


	5. Chapters 19-21

Chapter 19: Unlocking Power   
  
  
"Why do you want to make me into a weapon?"   
  
Kyle asks in a low voice as he stands up.   
  
"When we first found you, it was during the war, and we wanted to use you to completely and utterly destroy our enemies.. but you were still much too young. While we were waiting for you to grow up... the war had already come to an end."  
  
Hojo says in a matter-of-fact way. Kyle then looks at him and speaks;  
  
"What were the names of these enemies?"   
  
Pres. ShinRa looks at Hojo for a moment, and then he turns his attention to Kyle and speaks;  
  
"Various corporations that no longer exist. These corporations wouldn't sell out or merge with ShinRa, and I hate it when other companies make money that could be going into my pocket."   
  
Kyle blinks a few times as he looks at Pres. ShinRa, he has no idea of how he knows about war and corporations and other things like that.  
  
"But... how does that start a war.. and why would I be needed for something like that?"   
  
Kyle asks in a low voice. Hojo, who now has an evil looking smile on his face, looks at Kyle and replies;  
  
"It's simple, really. Before and during the war, ShinRa made weapons. We then sold these weapons to various countries, who, just "happened" to be the enemies of countries who were home to these corporations. And seeing as how they now had the ability to do so, they soon flexed this new muscle and put it to good use, namely attacking and causing destruction. However, the other companies made weapons and sold them to the enemies of the countries attacking them."   
  
"So... you start a major war.. let innocent people die... just for money?"   
  
Kyle says as he looks pale from what he just heard. Pres. ShinRa nods and then goes on where Hojo left off;  
  
"Yes, but after a few weeks they found out how it all started, and we were then drawn into the battles, and that's why we needed you. But as Hojo said, you were much too young for the mission we had in mind for you, and as we waited for you to grow up, our allies and ourselves managed to beat them down and we won, all thanks to Mako-based weapons. That is when ShinRa started selling Mako and other Mako-based products."   
  
"But.. if the war is over, why do you still need a weapon?"   
  
Kyle says as he looks down, which causes Hojo to laugh wickedly.  
  
"That's simple.. ShinRa is interested in global domination."   
  
Hojo says in an emotionless tone. Kyle then looks up at them both, his eyes wide in shock and terror. He then looks away from them and speaks;  
  
"I.. I... I... won't help you..."   
  
Hojo smirks and replies;  
  
"If you don't.. the Ancient will suffer."   
  
Kyle smirks.. it looks so much like Sephiroth's it's scary.   
  
"You wouldn't dare.. you need her to find the Promised Land."   
  
Kyle says as he replies, but this causes Pres. ShinRa to laugh and shake his head.  
  
"Come now Kyle, you know I don't have to give an order that will cause her death. What I will do, however, is order that she be put through a great deal of pain, both physical and emotional. Seeing her friends slowly die would be but the first step in her pain.. then we will move onto doing various painful, nasty things to her until you fall to your knees, beg me to stop it all, and then fall into line and follow my orders."  
  
Pres. ShinRa says as he stares at Kyle, his eyes show that he is capable of anything, as if he didn't have a soul. Kyle sighs and then looks at the floor and replies;.  
  
"I.. see you'll win out in the end... to save Aeris the pain.... I'll be your weapon..."   
  
Pres. ShinRa then smirks and pats him on the head, literally degrading Kyle to the point where he knows he is nothing more then a dog in his eyes.  
  
"Good boy, I'm glad you see it's pointless to resist."  
  
Hojo then looks at Kyle and speaks;  
  
"Well then Kyle, it's time we got on with this. Since you were in that tube from the age of 4, we couldn't physically teach you how to fight or how to use your powers. However, we did program them into your memory, along with tactics and a large vocabulary. These memories have been laying dormant within your mind, awaiting the day when a section of your brain would be stimulated, making them known to you. Now with that said, all I have to do is stimulate that section and you will be complete."  
  
"And how do you plan on doing that?"  
  
Kyle asks, which causes Hojo to pull out an odd device that looks similar to a hand gun. It's about a foot long, 5 inches wide and a foot in height, and it looks like it's made of metal.  
  
"Like this..."   
  
Hojo says as he suddenly moves toward Kyle. Kyle moves back slightly and Hojo then shoves the "barrel" of the device into Kyle's gut and pulls the "trigger," causing what appears to be a spike-like object to come out. The spike then enters Kyle's body, causing him to make few noises before he falls forward. As Hojo catches him, the spike opened and released a fluid into his body. As Hojo removes the device from Kyle's body, the hole that the spike had made seals up completely.  
  
"Now all we have to do it wait for our weapon's power to awaken."   
  
Pres. ShinRa says as he smirks darkly.  
  
  
Chapter 20: The Weapon Awakens  
  
  
On the 68th floor, Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Red XIII and Aeris are locked in the buildings "prison." Each room has one bed, a sink and a toilet. The entire room itself is made of solid steel, as are the doors, which have electronic locks.   
  
Aeris is in one room by herself, Cloud and Tifa are in the room right next to hers, while Red and Barret are across the "hall" from Cloud and Tifa.   
  
Cloud, who is sitting, is trying to think of a way to get out of the room, but he's also been thinking of other things, such as Kyle, his role as a weapon.. and the "situation" involving Kyle and Aeris. While he's been thinking for the past hour, Tifa has been laying on the bed in the silence, and she can't take it anymore. She suddenly sits up and looks at Cloud.   
  
"Have any idea as to how we'll get out of here?"  
  
She asks in the hopes that he has a plan, however that hope is smashed to bits when Cloud shakes his head.  
  
"I've been trying to think of a way.. but I can't see how we can get out.."   
  
He says as he stands up. He then walks over to the door, and taps it.   
  
"It's solid steel... my sword wouldn't last against it, so I don't think we'll be able to get out."   
  
Tifa looks down at the floor and starts to speak;  
  
"So.. we just give up hope? What about Kyle.. with his power he.."  
  
Cloud cuts her off;  
  
"No, he wouldn't help us because he can't. If he were to even try to go against ShinRa, the President would order the guard outside to open up Aeris' cell and hurt her enough to make him fall back into line."   
  
"He really does care about her..."   
  
Tifa says as she smiles slightly. Cloud stares at the floor and replies;  
  
"She loves him... and I have a feeling that he loves her... but he just doesn't know how to express his feelings."   
  
Tifa looks up at Cloud with a shocked look, as she didn't even expect to hear that.  
  
"How do you know that?"   
  
She asks as she keeps looking at him. Cloud then brings his head up and looks over at her.  
  
"It's simple. Kyle is always giving himself up to protect her, he will risk his life for her, and die for her if needed. I've also seen how Aeris acts when she's around him, she clings to him, she always held onto his hand whenever they walked, and the way she hugged him after he killed that monster.. I can tell she loves him."   
  
Cloud says as he turns and walks back to his sitting spot. He then sits down and speaks once more;   
  
"I'm gonna go to sleep.. maybe I'll come up with an idea tomorrow.."   
  
Tifa would like to take the chance to tell Cloud how she feels, but she still can't make herself do it. The only thing that truly holds her back is the fear of rejection, as she doesn't know what she would do if he did reject her, so she stays silent about it. She then lays back down on the bed and replies;  
  
"Goodnight Cloud.."   
  
Cloud doesn't answer, he's already asleep.  
  
A few hours have passed since Kyle was injected. Kyle, who is now laying on the floor, awakens slowly. As he starts to come around, he is instantly hit with a massive well of information that includes battle tactics, weapon skills, Ki control, magical and Ki attacks, limits of his skills, estimates on his pain threshold, speed, theories on his abilities to bend gravity, a comprehensive "dictionary" of words, complete with meanings, uses, sentence structure and many other things that he would eveer need to know in order to survive and be the perfect warrior.  
  
He slowly starts to stand, but stops as he feels a sudden weight on him, nothing he can't handle, but it wasn't their when he was put out. As he again starts to stand once more, and he discovers that armor, a sword, and even a cape has been placed on him. The swords hilt is 6 inches long and is a very dark red, the blade is over 6 feet long, double-bladed, it's white and can reflect light very well, making it perfect for blinding his enemies. His armor, which is made up of a chest plate with shoulder-guards, is a deep, but gentle blue color, while his cape is a deep shade of blue. The sword is located on his back, under the cape, with the hilt is exposed, which can be easily grabbed by his right hand. Hojo, who seemingly comes out of nowhere, speaks to him as he comes near;  
  
"So do you like your new equipment? It's all been specially designed to allow you full use of your powers and abilities while providing the maximum amount of defense and protection possible. Your sword allows you to fight a person or monster one on one if you don't feel like blowing them away with a Ki blast."   
  
President ShinRa, who also seemingly comes from no where, speaks to Kyle as well;   
  
"You shall be my personal body guard until we find something to send you after."   
  
Kyle looks at him and speaks as he nods;  
  
"I... understand.."   
  
Hojo, who heads for the stairs, speaks one last time as he slowly leaves the office;  
  
"I'll be going now."  
  
"Now Kyle, I want you to go downstairs and make sure nothing gets up here unless they show you that they have clearance for this floor. Don't fail me."  
  
Pres. ShinRa says in a serious tone of voice and Kyle nods slightly. He then walks toward the stairs and makes his way to the 69th floor. Once there he sits down and waits, he doesn't expect much to happen.. but he is wrong.  
  
  
Chapter 21: Power Struggle  
  
  
A black cloaked man runs toward the ShinRa buildings entrance. As he runs, he makes no noise at all, he seems to be as silent as darkness itself. The man then suddenly stops just shy of the front stairs, causing his black cloak to sway slightly before it, and his long, silver hair follows suit, moving gently as it comes to rest against the cloak. As the man looks upward towards the 67th floor of the building, his bright green eyes give off a brilliant Mako glow, and at the same time, a twisted smile forms on his lips.   
  
"Soon mother.. we shall be together again.."  
  
He says in a low, calm and cold tone. He then brings his head down and bring it to the level of the main door. He then suddenly bursts forward and just before he reaches the stairs he leaps into the air and lands a few inches from the doorway, and he brings his right arm backwards, to his cape and grabs a hold of a hilt. He draws his arm to the right and the long flowing blade appears. Once fully drawn, the ominous Katana shines in the light that comes from a light fixture above the door.  
  
Suddenly he brings the blade up and then he makes a few quick, well placed slashes on the door, and it falls to pieces. With a small smirk on his face he steps over what was once a barrier to his purpose and walks inside. He walks toward the receptionist, and as he nears her he brings his blade up and slashes her at neck level.. and after a moment her head falls and rolls.. another victim of his madness. With a feeling of pure sadistic glee he starts to runs toward the staircase to the right and then starts to climb them, all the while being completely silent. With a burst of inhuman speed he turns corners with ease and keeps climbing, all the while a darkness can be seen shining in his eyes  
  
Soon he reaches the 67th floor, and he makes his way to the storage area. As he enters the massive room he looks at the large containment unit and a cold smirk forms upon his lips. He walks to it and brings the blade of his sword up and then he brings it down upon the containment unit, and he brings it up again and slashes at it again, and then again.. until he stops, knowing that it is futile. His eyes narrow and he brings his blade around and he shoves it into the floor. He then makes his way the blasted unit and slowly places his hands upon it. He runs his hands over the "door" and grabs a hold of the small circular lock-like mechanism and he tries to turn it, but it will not budge. In a fit of pure rage he braces his foot onto it and tries to rip the door off, but again nothing.  
  
"Accursed thing!"  
  
He howls as moves away from it, but then he notices some wires attached to it and he follows them with his eyes. He then grabs his sword and starts to follow the wires until they vanish behind a few boxes, which he easily dispense with a few slashes of his blade and he set his eyes upon a massive generator that supplies energy to all of the 67th and 68th floors.   
  
"Ah, the answer to my current problem.."  
  
He mumbles as he brings his sword upward and aims the tip at the generator. He then drives the blade into it, causing it to throw sparks. The lights flicker for a few moments and then die completely with the generator. The doors on all the jail cells open and at the same time, so does the door to Jenova's.. cage.  
  
He walks back to the unit until he reaches it, at which point he reaches into the unit. With one quick pull the body of Jenova is pulled out of the unit and quickly it's thrown onto his shoulder.  
  
"Yes mother, I understand.. we must stop those ShinRa fools from finding our Promised Land... what's that? So, they tried to make another one did they? Well, let us go pay him a visit, shall we mother?"  
  
He says out loud as he walks toward the stairs. Just then some soldiers appear in-front of him, aim their weapons at him and both say in unison;  
  
"Freeze!"  
  
Suddenly a dark, insane laugh is heard that sends a chill down their spines. The body of Jenova comes to life, it's fingers forming talon-like claws. It springs from the man and it suddenly attacks the soldiers.. and they don't even have enough time to scream..  
  
Kyle suddenly sits up and looks around, his eyes show that he's tense. He can sense something new, different.. he searches it out, opening himself as he looks and he comes upon it. It's a strange life force that wasn't there moments ago. He stands quickly and draws his sword, the metal on metal sound is almost like music to his ears, it's as if he enjoys that sound. He stands there and waits for it.. no, them to come to him. The very cells that make up his being tell him that.. it's coming near, and then he can hear the footsteps and.. something else.   
  
The man climbs the stairs, Jenova upon his back and his blade in his right hand, he slowly drags the blade on the wall as he walks, a twisted smile upon his blood stained face. He gets to the 69th floor and then exits the small room that holds the stair case, carrying Jenova's body. His blade scrapes the walls, he loves that sound. As he enters the main room he stops as he spots Kyle.  
  
"So you are the one they made.. my replacement.."  
  
The man says in a cold tone, the blade of his sword pointed at Kyle.  
  
"So you're the 'Great Sephiroth.' You left ShinRa.. why have you returned?"  
  
Kyle asks as he stares at Sephiroth, who smirks.  
  
"To get mother, to stop these fools from getting the Promised Land... and of course.. to kill you!"  
  
Sephiroth howls as he charges toward Kyle, dropping Jenova on the floor. Kyle quickly brings the blade of his sword up just as Sephiroth brings his down, the swords make a loud clanging noise as they clash. Suddenly Sephiroth jumps backwards, and as he jumps he floats in the air, bringing his blade upward so the tip is pointing at the left wall.  
  
Kyle then slowly starts to float upwards, his sword is then pulled up to it's in-front of him and then he pulls it back to his right side slowly. And so he floats in-front of Sephiroth, his gleaming white blade is ready to be stained red with the blood of the "Great Sephiroth." Suddenly Kyle screams and flies toward Sephiroth with force, bringing his blade around from his side, hoping to drive it through his chest with one strike. Sephiroth, on the other hand, floats there. Once Kyle gets to within a foot of him he reacts and moves forward, his sword moves so swiftly it's just a blur. There is another loud noise as the blades clash. Slowly Sephiroth places his left hand on the hilt of his sword and slowly starts to push Kyle down. Responding to this Kyle quickly places his left on the hilt of his blade and starts to push back, but alas Sephiroth is too strong for him.   
  
He then looks up at Sephiroth and smirks his wicked smirk, which causes Sephiroth to blink once. In that split second Kyle suddenly shifts himself to the right, pulling his blade with him. With all resistance removed Sephiroth sprawls toward the floor. As he falls Kyle turns and raises his left hand in the air and starts to speak;  
  
"Frozen wind..."  
  
As he stops the air within the room starts to grow very cold quickly. With that he starts to speak once more;  
  
"...speak of forgotten truths! Ice3!"  
  
Blue streaks of magical energy fly in the room, collecting in his hand. As the streaks made contact with the air is froze the small amounts of water in the air, forming ice. Suddenly the energy bursts from his hand and the small pieces of ice form into large shards and they float as Sephiroth turns to face him. Suddenly Kyle throws his hand toward Sephiroth and the shards fly toward him. As Sephiroth looks upon the shards, he smirks.  
  
"Enduring light, shield from roaring magic! Magic Barrier!"  
  
He yells out as four beams of light burst into the room and form a sphere around his body. The shards of ice hit the sphere, shattering upon impact. The sphere then fades and Kyle brings his sword up, holding the hilt in both hands. Suddenly he flies down at Sephiroth at full speed, his sword ready to kill. Sephiroth jumps back just as Kyle shoves his sword full strength into the floor. Kyle tries to pull the blade out, and Sephiroth just laughs at him.  
  
"Foolish child... you should of known that you should never attack from above, but you'll never be able to put that new knowledge to use in battle now will you?!?"  
  
Sephiroth screams and then runs toward Kyle, who is still trying to pull his blade from the floor. Kyle looks up from his blade and sees Sephiroth charging at him, and in a worried state he tries to jump backwards, but it's much too late. With a sudden burst of pain, Kyle screams as the Masamune easily passes through his chest plate and pierces his flesh, driving itself deeper and deeper with each passing moment. As a wide eyed Kyle looks upon the face of his attacker, he sees the cold hatred in those green eyes, then quickly and suddenly a palm is shoved into Kyle's face.  
  
"Good-bye child..."  
  
Is all Kyle hears from Sephiroth before a massive burst of energy flies from his palm and slams into his body, throwing him backwards. A trail of blood hangs in the air for a moment as he's ripped from the blade of the Masamune, and moments later he slams into the wall. As Kyle starts to slide downwards, Sephiroth viciously laughs and launches another wave of pure energy, which causes Kyle's body to not only smash into the wall, but also causes him to go through the wall.  
  
"Yes I know mother.. let's go stop the ShinRa from finding the Promised Land before we do.."  
  
Sephiroth mumbles as he places his Masamune back in it's sheath and picks up Jenova's body. He then walks toward the staircase and slowly ascend it.. all the while getting closer and closer to his next victim.. President ShinRa. 


End file.
